


Better the Devil You Know

by TrappedUnderIce



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: All of the Tropes, Answers none of the hard questions, Dan knows (abstractly), Lucifer Is Back, M/M, Post-Season/Series 04
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:42:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 37,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23996938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrappedUnderIce/pseuds/TrappedUnderIce
Summary: There’s a good chance God is actually out to get him because Dan is somehow stuck in corona virus lockdown with the only person on Earth he can’t stand.  (Or the only devil on Earth he can’t stand?  Dan thinks that’s probably redundant though since Lucifer is also the only devil, on Earth or otherwise.  But the point is, whatever he is, Dan can’t stand him.)Yeah, they’d come to some sort of reticent tolerance of each other ever since Lucifer got back (mostly for Chloe’s sake), but Dan was pretty sure he was Lucifer’s least favorite human.  And Lucifer is certainly Dan’s least favorite... everything.And yet, here Dan is, stuck between the literal devil and the deep blue sea of Chloe’s ire if he tries to stay home alone.  And, somehow, the devil seemed like the better option.  Dan guesses Lucifer was stuck between a similar rock and a hard place — between ‘the Detective’ and ‘the Douche,’ as he’d say — and that’s how he ended up here too.Dan was pretty sure they were both going to regret their choice before the end of this.  It was already shaping up to be a very long two weeks.
Relationships: Dan Espinoza/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 44
Kudos: 291





	1. Tear My Soul Apart

**Author's Note:**

> I’m also stuck in lockdown in SoCal and this situation just has all the classic tropes so it was too hard to pass up.
> 
> Story and chapter titles are from Skold’s ‘Better the Devil’.

The doorbell rings. Dan waits and it rings again. He hopes whoever is on the other side will go away soon. They should. Probably FedEx or the Amazon guy anyway. It rings again and Dan groans. He’s not expecting anyone and no doubt this will require yet another overly long explanation as to why he can’t actually answer the door.

Maybe he should put up a sign. ‘Under Corona Quarantine.’ That’ll probably get people to leave him alone. (Or it’ll just get just neighbors to murder him; at least then he’ll never have to worry about annoyingly persistent delivery drivers?)

Things were crazy. A week ago, everything was mostly normal. Okay, stuff was starting to get strange: Trixie’s school was cancelled until April. (Now it's ‘distance learning until May’. Man, what a terrible introduction to middle school.) People were buying up everything at the grocery store. (The last time it was like this, they’d had huge wildfires, but even that wasn’t like this. This was much worse.) And the mayor was advising people to maintain six feet of distance or whatever and not to go out unless it’s necessary. (But Dan’s a cop and how the hell is he supposed to work and arrest people from six feet away, nevermind at home? Answer: he’s not.)

Half the office has called in sick or is ‘working from home’ and maybe Dan should have done that too, in retrospect. But he didn’t. Instead, he buckled down and took on even more shifts, trying to distract himself from, well, everything that has happened over the last two years. He didn’t stockpile groceries or toilet paper or gloves or hand sanitizer or _anything_ because, well, he was fucking working.

Chloe was working from home because she had Trixie this week. Ella was coming in only every other day, garbed in an outfit that looked somewhere between ‘post-apocalyptic’ and ‘Ebola ward.’ Things were quiet, mostly. Lucifer showed up once or twice and mostly bothered Dan. (He must have been really, really bored.)

Fine, Lucifer was a little helpful too, sometimes. If nothing else, he was company. Asked how Chloe was doing and if Dan had seen her. (Yes: from six feet away.) Asked when Dan was getting Trixie again and if he could come see her then. (Chloe and he hadn’t fully worked that out at the time. Now? No fucking way.)

Lucifer notably did not observe the six foot distancing, but then Dan supposed the Devil couldn’t get corona unless Chloe was nearby. Probably couldn’t infect Dan with it either, Dan remembers hoping.

(Chloe and Lucifer still had some weird thing going on Dan didn’t fully understand. He didn’t get their relationship — or ‘close friendship’ as they both insisted — could still only vaguely believe Lucifer even was really ‘the Devil’, could hardly understand the whole ‘Detective vulnerability sitch’, as Lucifer called it. But it also wasn’t really his business and it wasn’t like he actually cared. He was over Chloe, missed Charlotte, had worked out his anger at Lucifer, and now? Well, mostly he just found the overdressed, unfairly good looking, impossibly put together fallen angel annoying as fuck. Especially in the current environment.)

Anyway, it had started out a relatively normal day. Well, for what was the new normal in March 2020 anyway. Until Dan had been summoned to question a perp. Because even mundane forms of murder didn’t stop during the apocalypse, apparently. Ella had offered him a Chernobyl-esque suit which he’d declined because that seemed like overkill. He was wearing a stupid face mask over his mouth and nose (didn’t the hospitals need those more?), gloves, and freaking enclosed lab goggles though, which at the time had seemed like plenty; too much even. (Dan kind of wishes he could go back to that moment now though and take Ella up on the full kit, though.) Lucifer wasn’t around, initially, though he’d been asked to come in once he could. 

So Dan and the perp were going over the usual questions when finally Lucifer showed up and did his ‘what did you desire’ bit and the dude spilled everything. _Everything_. Full confession. It’d be an easy case and then Dan could go home and maybe get some apocalypse provisions, Dan recalls thinking. 

But right after the full confession, the perp started to hyperventilate with the realization he’s going to be going to prison. And probably await arraignment and sentencing in jail. Crowded LA jails where they were assuredly not taking care of the inmates’ health. (Dan has mixed feelings about that, but that’s another conversation.)

And then it happened.

The perp started yelling, ranting about ‘pigs’ and ‘fags,’ and Lucifer started taunting him. Dan tried to break it up and then... well, then, the perp spit on Dan. Right in his face. Dan could feel the saliva oozing down his right cheek. It’d be disgusting on the best of days, but in the current environment, it made his skin crawl. Made him react stupidly, instinctively. Instead of waiting and calmly exiting the room and letting someone help him wash his face off, he panicked, pawed at his cheek, and managed to dislodge both his face mask and goggles. He could feel the spit spreading near his lips and nose. 

So he panicked more. Then tried to make himself calm down. And that’s when he did the unthinkable and rubbed his fucking eyes under the goggles before he even realized what he was doing. “Fuck.”

Lucifer (who was notably not wearing any kind of protective gear, just looking like his usual GQ model self) looked horrified on Dan’s behalf (or maybe at Dan’s behavior, who knows) and, well, he fucking _growled_ at the perp. His eyes flashed red and the perp shrunk back in terror and screamed incoherently while Lucifer guided Dan out of the room and to the emergency chemical showers nearby.

Part of Dan still wonders if Lucifer just relished the idea of getting to shove Dan into the showers and watch while the chemical rain soaked him. Like, part of Dan understands it was technically procedure and all, but… Lucifer looked fucking gleeful, like the asshole jocks from middle school throwing the nerds into the cold showers after gym class.

So after Dan's complete and utter humiliation, he was able to dress in some of his extra clothes and then was told he needed to work from home for the next two weeks and not leave the house, just in case. Which would have been bad enough, except two days into said ‘working from home,’ he’s making breakfast and watching the world disintegrate in HD when he missed a call from the LT. Followed by 10 missed calls from Chloe and a text message saying he needed to call the station immediately. When he finally does, it’s the fucking cherry on top.

The perp? Was now on a ventilator and had tested positive for the respiratory plague going around. And now Dan needed to be extra vigilant because he was officially on quarantine for a known direct exposure. And, since he didn’t have any symptoms (yet?), they weren’t going to test him since those were in short supply. (Apparently the entire NBA and all of Hollywood qualified for testing from direct and not-so-direct exposure without symptoms despite the shortage, but not an active duty LAPD homicide detective. Priorities.)

Terrific.

Instacart was crazy. Everything was fucking sold out constantly, and it wasn’t like Dan kept large stores of stuff at his shitty apartment where he spent as little time as possible. Amazon was scaling back to ‘essential deliveries’ first. And half of their shit was sold out. 

Even still, the DoorDash and Seamless delivery dudes seemed to be idiots of his caliber and would constantly wait for him to answer the door, no matter how many times he typed ‘please just leave it at my doorstep’ in their instructions and then pleaded from inside his door for them to do that. It was annoying as hell.

Which brought him to today, 3 days post-exposure. He’d ordered a few things from Amazon and while he wasn’t expecting them right now, the mail was crazy lately. So that’s probably all it is. But damn, this delivery guy is persistent.

The doorbell rings again. Dan sighs and starts to get up from his perch at the counter to go to the door when he hears the door unlock and open. Fucking fantastic. He’s still has no fucking milk or bread, he’s possibly got the plague, and now? Someone’s breaking into his place. The day couldn’t get worse.

And then he hears Lucifer’s voice coming from the front door. “Daniel? I do hope you haven’t succumbed to this illness, one of the reasons I left hell was to avoid witnessing people drown in their own bodily fluids.”

Dan sits back down and thunks his forehead against the counter. Clearly, he’d spoken too soon.

* * *

Dan was definitely, definitely wrong about things not getting worse. He knew that now.

“The Detective has agreed that I should stay with you and watch you — cop-sit, if you will —until your quarantine is over or until you succumb to the contagion.” Lucifer is leaning against the counter Dan is still sitting at. He still looks perfect. There’s a plague of, well, _biblical_ proportions (maybe literally? He’ll have to ask Lucifer that, later) and Lucifer looks like he could head down a runway, not so much as a hair out of place. (And he could probably make a face mask look stylish too. Ugh.) And he smells like … sweet? Vanilla maybe? Somehow it fits, perfectly, on him, of course. 

(In contrast, Dan is wearing the same stained white undershirt he put on after he got home from that ill-fated questioning. And sweatpants that only have 2 holes in them. His hair is a mess. He smells... well, he doesn’t know, but he’s sure it isn’t good. Definitely not vanilla.)

Dan sighs. (Again. He’s pretty sure he’s going to be doing a lot of that today.) “You really don’t have to do that, dude. I’m fine. If I start showing symptoms, I can call the emergency line…”

Dan trails off as he notices Lucifer wrinkling his nose. (Yeah, he’s sure he smells bad. Ugh. This is embarrassing.)

“You know the Detective isn’t going to accept that and I can’t either.” Lucifer tells him, taking him in with narrower eyes. “Besides, it’s clear you can’t be trusted to care for yourself based on your current state. Are you out of detergent or something?”

Dan rolls his eyes. “I’m in quarantine, it’s not like anyone sees me or I’m going out.” He mumbles, heat rising to his cheeks.

“Standards, Daniel. You ought to keep some minimal ones.” Lucifer is looking around Dan’s apartment in undisguised disgust. “Genuinely, do you know how to clean?”

Fine, it’s a mess, but seriously, no one is supposed to be here but Dan. He’d have cleaned if he had known to expect Lucifer over. Couldn’t he have like... called or messaged or something? 

Dan bites back the embarrassment. “Dude…. I’m fine, you can tell Chlo you checked in on me and I’m fine.” 

“Again, I need to _stay with you_ and _watch_. I don’t think dropping in is sufficient.” Lucifer tells him, moving his finger through a trail of grease on the stove and looking at it in (mock?) horror. “Have you _ever_ cleaned this?” 

“Look, thanks for checking in on me, but I don’t want you here watching my every move and critiquing my place…” Dan starts to tell him off.

“Believe me when I tell you this is not my prefered shelter-in-place activity either.” Lucifer is washing his hands and then starts rifling around under the sink. “Although, riling you up _is_ almost as good…” 

He’s found some kind of kitchen cleaner and is spraying the greasy tract.

“Do you own rags or should I just use paper towels?” He questions.

“Dude! Stop!” Dan grabs his arm and then starts to tug Lucifer away from the kitchen and back towards the front door. It’s a bit of a scuffle as Lucifer very half-heartedly resists.

“Watch the Armani, dear.” Lucifer snaps at him. The ‘dear’ makes something in Dan’s stomach twist in annoyance. It’s so condescending. “I’m just trying to help.” Lucifer tells him with a huff. 

So fucking condescending. 

There are wrinkles at the spots where Dan has grabbed his jacket to pull him out and Lucifer’s hair is a tiny bit unkempt from the slight struggle. And there’s this small part of Dan that is rejoicing in how Lucifer kind of looks a little like a ruffled bird and that he’s responsible for it. 

It makes Dan smirk a little watching Lucifer smooth his suit while standing in front of the door.

His satisfaction is short lived.

“Well, fine, I suppose we’ll have to do this the hard way.” Dan hears Lucifer say as he pulls out his phone and types something.

A chill goes up Dan’s spine. Surely he’s not —

Dan’s phone rings on the counter. He gulps. It’s Chloe’s ringtone.

“Aren’t you going to get that?” Lucifer says, gleefully. Like he knows he’s going to win this. 

(And geeze, what kind of jerk do you have to be to fight so hard to win an argument that is going to ultimately punish both of them?! 

The kind of jerk who gets kicked out of Heaven and runs Hell part-time time, apparently.)

Dan glares at him and then stalks over to pick up the phone. “Hey Chlo.”

“Dan, you have to let Lucifer stay with you. This thing is serious, you’re probably going to get it, there’s all those reports of people succumbing quickly after initially being fine…”. Her voice sounds a little panicky. Dan’s chest tightens a little. (It’s just anxiety. Probably. He hopes.)

“Chlo, I’m fine, really. I promise I’ll call if I get any symptoms. I’ll even call him if that’s what you want. I don’t need a babysitter.” Dan tells her, rubbing his forehead. He’s starting to get a headache now. Is that a symptom of corona or just an indication of how done he is with the idea of Lucifer watching him?

“Dan, please?” She says softly. “You know Trix and I can’t watch you and you’re all alone and I’m just worried. Please just let Lucifer keep an eye on you? Please?” She’s begging a little with that voice she’d use when she really wanted him to do something. The same one Trix uses when she wants chocolate cake.

Ugh. He always gives in when she uses that voice.

Dan sighs. “Okay, sure, but can he just drop by once in a while or something? He really can’t stay here.”

Lucifer has walked towards him while they were talking. “Yes, Detective, Daniel’s correct, there’s no way I can stay here, this place is … insufficient.” His eyes keep moving between the grease-cleaner puddle on Dan’s stove and a mountain of takeout trash next to Dan’s trash can as he speaks.

Dan hits the speaker phone. “See Chlo? Even Lucifer doesn’t think this is a good idea.”

“But what if something happens when he’s not there? He’s the only one —“. Chloe’s voice is tinny over the shitty speaker phone on Dan’s old 7th generation iPhone. (Even Trixie has a newer phone than him.)

“I suppose I could take him back to the penthouse….” Lucifer muses aloud.

Dan drops his phone on the floor.

“Dude, why the hell would you even say that?!” Dan hisses and then shoves Lucifer. Hard.

Lucifer stumbles back. “What? Your place is inferior. If I’m going to Douche-sit, we’d both be more comfortable at the penthouse.”

He looks annoyed. Good. Dan’s annoyed too. Why is he being so persistent about this? They don’t even like each other. It’s no skin off his back if Dan disappears. Sure, Chloe would probably care a little and she’s got Lucifer like wrapped around her finger (how and why, Dan still doesn’t understand), but still. There have to be limits to what you’ll do for your best friend/maybe girlfriend, especially when it comes to their ex that you barely tolerate. Right?

“Guys?” Chloe’s voice is muffled by the cheap carpeting on Dan’s floor. “What happened? Are you arguing again?”

Lucifer makes it over to the phone first. He gingerly picks it up, as if it’s toxic. “Yes, Detective, Daniel doesn’t want to come with me back to the penthouse. Perhaps you can convince him otherwise, as we both agree his dwelling is clearly unsuitable and frankly I question how he hasn’t fallen ill already in this —“

Dan snatches his phone back. “Chlo, look, I appreciate your concern, but —“

Chloe cuts him off. “Lucifer, that’s a great idea. Take him back to Lux. You’re closer to the hospital too if something happens and —“

Then they start talking over each other. 

“Yes, I know this, but he doesn’t want to —“  
“Chlo, I really don’t think I need to —“

“Go.” They finish talking at the same time. Ugh. Lucifer looks at him in amusement.

“Dan. Please?” Dan can hear the pout in Chloe’s voice. He’s stuck. He knows it.

“Yes, Daniel, listen to the Detective and come along.” Lucifer sounds smug.

Ugh.

“Fine.” Dan agrees, grumbling.

“Thank you, thank you.” Chloe sounds relieved and Dan feels a little bit guilty for resisting this. Like, she just wants to make sure he’s okay and doesn’t drop dead and it really is the thought that counts. Right? (He just wishes ‘the thought’ didn’t come along with tall, dark, and obnoxious.)

“Excellent, now run along and gather your hoodies and some actual clothing. I have laundry and shower facilities at the penthouse which I expect you’ll need. And detergent. And soap. Talk to you later Detective.” 

Lucifer reaches over and clicks the disconnect button, then shoos Dan off in the direction of his room. Dan goes. 

When he returns, Lucifer is back to cleaning his fucking stove and the trash has disappeared. Dan sighs.

Two weeks stuck with Lucifer. Maybe Dan will get lucky and get the plague thing after all. At least Satan wouldn't be at the hospital?

* * *

“What’s your angle in this?” Dan asks as he’s riding shotgun in some ridiculous car that probably costs more than his life insurance will pay out if he ends up dying from this thing. 

Lucifer looks so at ease, perfect, driving it. It’s annoying. How did Dan get sucked into this?

“Whatever do you mean, Daniel?” Lucifer asks in his usual smug tone.

Dan rolls his eyes. “Why are you watching me? How did Chloe even talk you into this?”

“Well, obviously to make sure you don’t die of this dreaded respiratory infection. And she asked. Nicely.”

Ugh. That probably means something else, doesn’t it? Something porny. But Chloe isn’t…

It must be showing on his face because Lucifer laughs and then quips “Get your mind out of the gutter. If only the Detective would persuade me that way.” Then Lucifer looks uncharacteristically serious. “She’s concerned about you falling ill.” His voice gets quiet. “And, I suppose, I would also prefer if you didn’t grace my other residence, especially since this entire ordeal is, for once, my fault.”

What? “Wait, did the virus come from hell or something?” Dan gasps.

Lucifer’s face drops into a scowl. “What are you prattling on about? Oh yes, blame the Devil for all of humanity’s ills.” He rolls his eyes. “No, that aspect is all on my father.” He says, bitterly.

“Sorry — I um, I didn’t mean — it’s just —. I don’t know what this has to do with you, man.” Dan rambles. Ugh. Already accidently punching below the belt when they’re going to be stuck together for the next 12 days. It’s not even an hour in.

Lucifer’s expression softens a little. “Yes, well, it was my mojo that started this whole mess to begin with. So I…”. He trails off, seemingly lost for words.

When is Lucifer ever lost for words?

The world is so weird now.

“Anyway, so now you’ll be under my watch. Ah, here we are.” Lucifer pulls into a park space in a garage under Lux. Dan’s only been down here once or twice, so he’s never really paid attention to the area. But, damn, there are like 15 cars down here. Are they all Lucifer’s? They must be, the place is shut down right now.

Dan gets out of the car and Lucifer sprays some kind of solution all over the seats and dashboard and then wipes it up while Dan awkwardly watches, feeling like a huge imposition. Then Lucifer tapes a note on the windshield.

“Do not use until 4/15.” It reads in Lucifer’s extra neat, scripted handwriting.

“Right, now to the lift. Don’t touch anything, least someone else need to use in the next few days.” Lucifer warns as they pile in with Dan’s duffel bag of clothes and a backpack of stuff.

“Look, um… thanks? I guess? Like, it wasn’t your fault what happened at the station and —“ Dan starts, awkwardly. The elevator rings and Dan enters the penthouse without finishing. Lucifer doesn’t follow at first, spraying everything with his cleaning solution and wiping it with more towels.

“Right, well, here we are.” He says when he finally steps inside. “First thing: shower. You smell retched.” He shoves Dan towards his bedroom. “Shower is through the closet. Towels are in the cabinet. Help yourself to whatever you need.” And then he turns and goes down the hall.

Fuck, this is awkward. Dan’s only been in Lucifer’s penthouse a few times. Only been in his bedroom like once before. It’s so weird.

There are no doors. Not even in the bathroom. It’s just an interesting maze of walls that sort of hides any direct view. It’s unsettling and he’s having trouble relaxing as he strips off the old clothes and gets into the shower. 

(He’s not even sure why: he’s showered in front of other people plenty of times and while he’s not really an exhibtionist, he’s hardly a prude. Hell, he was naked in front of Lucifer on that one case…

The memory of the Russian bath house,along with the way Lucifer kept eyeing him and how… weird… it felt, comes back.

Dan’s not blushing, it’s just the water is really warm.)

After he showers, he dresses in jeans and a tshirt and then looks around for his bag that he’d dropped somewhere in Lucifer’s room. He finds it, but it’s empty of his clothes now and that realization is... unsettling.

Lucifer comes up behind him. “I put them in the wash. With detergent. I assumed they needed it based on the odor.”

“Is this how it’s going to be for the next week and half? You making fun of me?” Dan groans as he sits on the bed to put on his socks.

“Don’t make yourself such an easy target, dear.” Lucifer responds and fucking grins at him.

Dan grits his teeth in annoyance.

He wishes, for the first of many times over the next week, that Chloe and he didn’t co-parent so well and she would have left him to his own devices.  
  


* * *

  
Lucifer cooks. Like, well. It’s super fucking weird. It’s better than any of the takeout Dan has ordered in the past few days, anyway. (Honestly, it’s better than any of the fancy restaurants he’s eaten at too — even the really uppity ones Charlotte used to drag him too.)

They’re sitting in Lucifer’s dining area, next to his huge and shockingly immaculate kitchen. 24 hours ago, Dan would have assumed the penthouse didn’t have a kitchen and that Lucifer subsisted mostly on alcohol and stolen pudding, or that, if it did exist, it was immaculate because Lucifer didn’t cook in it or at least had someone else to clean it. Nope, turns out the Devil is Martha fucking Stewart and has OCD.

Did Dan mention this was weird? He’s spent the last two hours awkwardly sitting in Lucifer’s living room and alternating between watching tv (Lucifer has literally every channel and streaming service Dan has ever heard of. He gets the Spanish channels, the British ones, the Japanese ones, even Russian) and reading how the world is disintegrating via Reddit. (Dan’s also freaking himself out reading every AMA with a corona patient. He’s so fucked if he’s actually got it.)

And now dinner. They’re eating fucking scallops and some kind of pasta thing and salad thing. (Dan doesn’t know what any of this is, it’s way fancier shit than he ever eats.) That Lucifer made. And it’s… irritating in a way Dan can’t place. Maybe because he usually comforts himself by thinking of how immature Lucifer is. And now, instead, Dan seems to be failing at adulting and Lucifer has this all wrapped up.

(No wonder Chloe wanted to date Lucifer. No wonder everyone wants to date him. Seriously, this is way better and more impressive than any waffle Dan has ever made. Dan wonders how many of the 90-something people that graced the station during that case years ago have had the Devil make them dinner. 

Fuck, this is a weird thought process.)

Neither of them is talking. It’s awkward. LA is sparkling below them out the window and the sun is starting to set. 

(It occurs to Dan this would be romantic if he was actually with someone he could stand. Or with someone that actually liked him. But instead he’s got… Lucifer.)

“Um, thanks for cooking?” Dan says. It sounds like a question. 

“Well, I’m skeptical you can function in a kitchen, though I suppose that grease must have gotten there somehow…”. Lucifer quips in response. Of course he can’t just take the compliment. Instead, he’s got obnoxious commentary. 

And he’s smiling. It’s so fucking annoying.

(His eyes are kind of smiling too and if it were anyone else, Dan would probably take it as friendly teasing or something, but it’s not anyone else and Lucifer doesn’t friendly tease him, he just tries to irritate the fuck out of him.)

Dan drops his silverware and then pushes his plate away and groans, head lolling in the process. “Could you just stop with the insults for a little while, dude? It’s been a long week.”

The smile slides off Lucifer’s face and out of his eyes and he looks almost confused. Maybe. A little hurt even. (Serves him right.). “Apologies.” He says softly. Then he stands and clears his plate, exiting down the hall without another word.

Leaving Dan alone with half a scallop and the LA sunset and feeling like he kind of just fucked up.

* * *

Dan wanders out to the living area. It’s affirmatively dark outside now, though Lucifer has turned on all the lights inside.

He’s sitting at his piano playing something moody and sad sounding. He’s totally not paying attention to Dan at all, doesn’t even seem to remember Dan is even here.

(Dan’s only heard Lucifer play the piano a few times before. Once before he knew the whole truth about him. And even then, when he heard Lucifer play the piano, he seemed more... real. Like the playboy thing might be a facade and he had been through some actual shit. And now? Man….)

Dan clears his throat. Lucifer either doesn’t notice or ignores him. Probably the latter. Dan wants to say something sarcastic except...

Lucifer looks so… emotional. It’s like watching a performance, as he sways back and forth, forward and back, his hands moving gracefully over the keyboard. The light is reflecting off his hair and his face contorts with the melody, crashing. He’s so... yeah. 

It’s weird.

Lucifer seems to finish the song and stands up, realizing Dan is there. And Dan mostly looks like a super creeper since he’s just staring. But if Lucifer thinks that, he doesn’t say anything. He just quietly closes the cover on the piano keys and then walks over to behind the bar.

“Drink?” He asks.

Dan nods and shifts to sit at the bar. He watches while Lucifer pours whiskey into two glasses. He hands one glass to Dan and then holds up a finger.

“Oh, wait. I should take your temperature. The checklist online said that was a symptom.” Lucifer pulls a thermometer from under the counter and then waves it in front of Dan’s face.

“Seriously?” Dan asks. “I feel fine—“. He objects.

Lucifer shoves the fucking thermometer in Dan’s mouth and then holds Dan’s jaw.

“Seriously.” He’s doing that obnoxious smirk and his eyes are doing it too, except it’s like… weird because it doesn’t actually seem like he’s trying to be a jerk, not exactly, and Dan’s jaw is kind of tingling where Lucifer still has his hand and it’s almost just…. It’s fucking weird.

For a second, Dan feels like he’s caught in a spell, maybe, lost in some drug induced hazed. 

Then Lucifer releases his hold on Dan’s jaw and pulls out the thermometer. “98.8. That’s fortunate. Have you experienced any difficulty breathing, coughing, chest aches, sore throat, or loss of smell?” 

Dan briefly does forget to breathe.

“What?” He asks, a little dazed. He shakes his head. 

What the hell was that? 

“Daniel? Are you alright?” Lucifer actually looks kind of concerned, and he’s leaning over the bar towards him.

Dan shakes his head again. “Um, yeah, sorry, I just…. I think I’m tired.” He grabs the closest glass of whiskey and sips. He’s off, it’s gotta be this week catching up to him.

Right?

“You know fatigue is also a symptom.” Lucifer clicks his tongue while eyeing Dan. He still looks concerned. It’s…. 

“No, I think it’s just… everything.” Dan gestures with his free hand and then drinks more.

Lucifer nods and grabs his drink. “Ah, yes. Um, sleeping arrangements.” He looks surprised, like he’s forgotten about that whole sleeping thing. “Well, you can take the bed or I could get you things for the sofa. Or, if you’d prefer more privacy” — he says it funny, with a short ‘i’, or maybe it’s just British— “I do have empty rooms down that hall, except they’re currently lacking in furnishings, but I can probably get something in the next day or —“

“The couch is fine, man.” Dan cuts in. 

“Are you certain?” Lucifer starts, “You could take the bed…”. He offers again.

Dan's chest tightens again. The idea of sleeping in Lucifer’s bed is … weird. He hopes he’s not actually getting sick.

“Nope, couch is perfect. Thanks, dude.” Dan says quickly, swallowing the rest of his drink and walking towards the couch.

Lucifer shrugs and then bounds over to his room and disappears. He returns a moment later with a pillow and a blanket and places them on the couch next to Dan. 

“Great, um, do you mind if I change and then...”. Dan starts. Ugh, why is he being so weird, cringey? 

Lucifer nods and points towards his room. “I’ve put your hoodies in the closet, section nearest the bath.” Lucifer calls to him as he starts walking. “There’s also a bin for your laundry there.”

Dan waits for a beat, expecting a snippy comment, but it never comes. 

Why is Lucifer being so nice?

Dan changes and by the time he’s out, Lucifer is in his bedroom, wearing only silk boxers and a white vneck, reading on his bed. (So, at some point he must’ve stripped out here and…. Yeah, weird.)

Dan, clad in sweatpants, sneaks around him, out to the couch and lays down. It’s dark in the living room now, all the lights are off. Lucifer turns off the light in his room too, though Dan can see he’s still doing something on his phone, the small light visible whenever he shifts.

Dan’s exhausted, but he can’t stop tossing and turning. It’s so hard to sleep. Everything keeps running through his head. Plus, it’s so _weird_ being here.

By the time he falls into some kind of restless dream, it’s well past midnight and even Lucifer seems to have passed out before him.


	2. Drown Me in Your Sea of Darkness

Dan has weird fucking dreams, sleeping on Lucifer’s couch. It’s not anything that out of the ordinary, he guesses, but it’s just weird because he’s here and …

Okay, it’s also _weird_ because he’s dreaming _about_ Lucifer. 

Not like _that_. _That_ would be too weird. (Right? Like the guy’s obviously good looking or whatever — Dan’s stomach twists in annoyance — but Dan’s not really into guys, _especially_ not guys like Lucifer, and Lucifer’s not…. okay, Lucifer is into guys, but he’s definitely not into Dan.

Ugh. Why the hell is he even thinking about this? God, the way his mind wanders is disturbing.)

But anyway, he kept having these _weird_ almost mundane dreams where he’s playing video games, of all things, with Lucifer. On the couch Dan’s sleeping on, and they’re like being friendly and high-fiving and it’s just…

Dan’s stomach twists again. It’s still super fucking strange and what does that mean? Are they supposed to be friends now? Does he even want to be friends with Lucifer? Would Lucifer even want to be friends with him? Sure, he’s made Dan dinner and let him crash at his place and is babysitting him or whatever, but that’s all out of obligation or as a favor to Chloe.

(God, why did Lucifer have to infiltrate his dreams and thoughts now too? Dan couldn’t get a fucking break.)

“Daniel, are you awake? There’s coffee.” Speak of the Devil.

Dan groans and sits up. Lucifer is coming down the hall in one of his silk robes and he looks annoyingly well groomed for it being…. what time is it even? 

Dan looks at his phone (which at some point got plugged into a charger that is not his; he should probably thank Lucifer for that). It’s almost 9 am.

Okay, fine, it’s not that early to have brushed hair. (At least he’s not showing Dan up even more by already being in one of his damned three piece suits?)

“Coffee dear?” Lucifer asks again, handing a cup over to Dan and then sitting in one of the chairs with his own cup.

Dan accepts the cup of coffee. “Um, thanks man…”. Dan mutters. He catches a glimpse of his own reflection in one of the windows and…. well, he looks like he just woke up. His hair is everywhere, he’s got lines on his face and arms from the pillow and couch seams and he generally just looks like a mess. Sigh.

Lucifer is just sitting calmly in the chair, sipping coffee and reading an actual fucking newspaper of all things. He still looks like a damn model, his robe slipping slightly off his shoulder and you can kind of see his chest and deltoids —. The dude looks like he works out. Dan wonders if he has a gym in one of the rooms up here and if he’ll let Dan use it.

Dan realizes he’s staring and feels his face heat up. God, this was still _weird_. He feels so out of place here. 

Thankfully Lucifer didn’t seem to notice so Dan switches to staring intently at his coffee and trying to think about absolutely nothing. Especially not why his mind keeps going down weird tangents related to Lucifer.

Who is staring at him now. Dan doesn’t notice it at first because he’s too busy thinking into his coffee cup, but when he glances out the window he can see it in the reflection.

It’s unnerving. He’s probably going to make some snide remark about how terrible Dan looks soon.

“Did you sleep alright?” Ah, here it comes. “You look…”. Lucifer trails off.

“Like a wreck?” Dan lifts his eyes to look at Lucifer. 

“Tired.” Lucifer says. “Not a wreck.” His eyes meet Dan’s and Dan’s chest suddenly burns uncomfortably causing him to cough.

“Oh dear, now you’re getting the cough. I should take your temperature again.” Lucifer hurriedly stands up and walks over to Dan. 

Dan’s trying to shake his head, ‘cause it’s just the coffee or something, not the virus he may or may not be infected with, but it’s to no avail.

Lucifer looks at him curiously and then puts his hand on Dan’s forehead. Dan feels light headed.

His hand is warm. And like weirdly soft. And Dan feels weird as hell for noticing those things.

Dan is pretty sure he’s turning red.

“You don’t feel warm, but you look flushed. Let me grab the thermometer.” He says and then moves towards the bar.

A moment later and he’s back and sticking the damn thing under Dan’s tongue. Again. Dan wants to object but he can’t find his voice and it’s probably easier to just roll with it at this point.

“Normal. Hm.” Lucifer muses after a minute. “You don’t seem to be coughing anymore either. How are you feeling?”

Dan pushes him away. “I’m fine. Really. Just the coffee. And I didn’t sleep well.” He really wants Lucifer to be anywhere but next to him.

“Oh?” Lucifer asks, moving again to look over him. “Why? Difficulty breathing? A sore throat perhaps?”

“N-no! I’m not sick, it’s just your couch isn’t that comfortable...” Dan stammers.

(Lucifer’s robe has opened and it’s really distracting. Dan swears he’s more built than the last time he saw this much of his skin. Of course, that was years ago. He must have some kind of workout routine given how much junk he eats. Or maybe that’s a Devil Power? All the cheesy puffs, booze, and pudding you want with perfectly chiseled abs….)

Ugh, Dan’s starring again. He can’t seem to pull his eyes away and he’s more than a little mortified by it.

Lucifer kind of looks like he noticed. He’s smirking.

“Do you have a gym up here?” Dan hears himself ask.

Lucifer’s face slips into confusion. “What?”

“A gym? Like, where you work out? You’ve clearly been doing something —”. Oh geeze, Dan’s rambling now, saying too much.

Lucifer looks surprised. “Oh! Yes, though, I don’t actually —”. Lucifer starts then seems to think of something and cuts off.

“Can I use it?” Dan asks, trying to make this as unweird as he can. His stomach kind of hurts. It’s probably just being annoyed. Not the virus.

“Sure, it’s just down that hallway and on the left. Would you like breakfast first? I wanted to make omelets.” Lucifer asks him.

“Um, sure that’d be great…. you really don’t have to cook for me though.”

If Lucifer hears him, he doesn’t acknowledge it and he’s already down the hall to his kitchen before Dan can say anything else.

* * *

They have breakfast, mostly in awkward silence, and then Dan busies himself in Lucifer’s home gym, which is better than the gym at the station. It’s a good way to get out of his mind for a few hours. 

After a little while, Lucifer comes by to watch him and, of course, he’s in one of his three piece ensembles and looks like he’s about to head to a club, not the gym.

“Do you do this type of thing every day normally?” Lucifer asks him.

Dan’s suddenly out of breath and flushed again. He’s going to chalk it up to the work out and having not done this in a while. He hopes it’s not because he’s getting sick.

“Yeah? Or I try to?” Dan says, wheezing a little.

“Why?”

Dan looks at Lucifer like he has three heads. What the hell? This is his gym, he’s got a visible six pack, shouldn’t he get it?

“To stay in shape? Come on, man, you know…”. Dan gestured vaguely up and down at Lucifer’s… everything.

“Oh. Not really, devil thing. My subconscious has a greater effect on that than my physical activities.” Lucifer says nonchalantly, staring as Dan lays back to continue his reps on the bench press.

Dan nearly drops the weight on his face. He tries to rack the barbell again but can’t quite seem to get it in the hooks. “Seriously? You don’t have to do anything to look like that?” 

Ugh. Dan’s face is heating up again.

“No.” Lucifer says as he steps behind Dan to grab the barbell — with one hand — and place it back on the hooks.

Dan sits up. He’s definitely flushed. “Why do you own this stuff then?”

“Mazikeen mostly. But I also use them to better understand human limitations. Practice not looking too... gifted, so to speak.” He answers blandly.

Dan just stares, shocked. No fucking way. He has it so he can practice not seeming too strong? How is that fair?

“Are you quite alright?” Lucifer asks, with a perplexed look.

“You are so lucky dude.” Dan remembers to breathe.

“Yes, well, trust me when I say it’s a small perk when compared to, you know, being kicked out of Heaven forever and being forced to rule hell, nevermind being blamed for humanity’s downfall and evils.” Lucifer sounds really annoyed. “Want to trade?” He turns and exits the room without waiting for Dan’s response.

Dan kind of feels like an ass now, and his stomach hurts (but he’s sure that it’s just from the crunches he did earlier).

* * *

Dan gives Lucifer a wide berth for the rest of the afternoon, confining himself to the patio and browsing reddit and Instagram and wobble. They run into each other briefly in the kitchen, but they don’t talk and Lucifer doesn’t cook, just gestures at the fridge and grumbles “Help yourself.” He seems moody. 

When Dan finally does come inside, it’s late afternoon, and Lucifer is playing Call of Duty on the tv. He’s bad at it. (Probably trying to use the same tactics he uses in real life, forgetting they’d get normal people killed. Just like his character is getting.)

Dan laughs at the thought.

“Oh, like you can do better at this bloody contraption. I swear, it’s all taunting children and Eve on here.” Lucifer complains. (Dan notices one of the players he’s against has the handle Or1ginalSinner. She’s killed him like 5 times.)

Dan grabs the controller out of Lucifer’s hands. “Anyone could do better than you are. Dude, turns out there _is_ something you’re bad at.” Dan teases as the game starts. “About time.”

For a split second Lucifer looks annoyed and then he breaks into a smile.

A minute later, Dan takes down Eve’s character and Lucifer excitedly claps him on the back.

“Yes! You got her, Daniel!” He’s still touching Dan. Dan feels that chest tightness again. “In your face!” Lucifer yells into the microphone he’s still wearing.

He’s got a giant grin on his face too and it’s…

Weird.

Dan’s smiling too, he can’t stop himself.

And that’s when BestTorturer666 sneaks up and downs him. He can hear Maze’s shriek over Lucifer’s headphones.

“Bloody hell, no one told me we were doing teams! Okay, I have another controller somewhere, let me get Daniel set up and then we can start over.”

* * *

Lucifer is terrible at this. Even worse than Dan realized. (And he’s not just saying that because he’s set Dan’s handle as RestingCopFace. At least he’s not DetectiveDouche…)

Dan spends as much time trying to keep Fall1n1 from getting killed as he does killing Maze and Eve. Who are both perfectly capable of actually shooting other people and defending themselves, so it’s totally not fair. (The fact that Dan and Lucifer aren’t losing that badly says something about Dan’s video game abilities, at least. Too bad Lucifer doesn’t understand that.)

“Dude, seriously, we would do better if you just stood still.” Dan complains.

Fall1n1 whirls around and shoots RestingCopFace in his… resting cop face. Again. Dan’s not sure if that was intentional or not this time.

“Apologies, these bloody controls are rather confusing.” Lucifer says with a completely straight face.

Dan’s still not sure whether killing him was intentional, even with the apology. Dan scrubs his hand across his face and laughs though.

Lucifer has killed Dan in friendly fire more times than he’s even hit anyone else. It’s good he’s not allowed a gun usually, because Dan definitely wouldn’t trust him with one now.

Lucifer grins at him. (Okay, now Dan thinks the killing him maybe was intentional.)

“You guys stink.” Eve’s voice crackles over the headphones. 

“Yeah, well, you try teaming with Lucifer.” Dan grumbles. 

“No way, you’re stuck with your quarantine partner. No stealing mine.” Maze’s voice shoots back.

Dan’s stomach is starting to hurt again.

* * *

They play a couple more rounds against Eve and Maze until they sign off. Then Dan convinces Lucifer to let Dan teach him the controls and some basic strategy. He’s a quick learner, and by the end, they can actually stand their own opposing the random teenagers they’re matched against. (They’ll still probably get creamed by Maze and Eve, but at least now there’s a chance.)

By the third random match, Lucifer has actually successfully (and intentionally!) taken down several players!

“Dude, nice shot!” Dan tells him and they like instinctively high-five. 

Lucifer looks like…. happy? He’s smiling and looks relaxed and Dan’s not actually sure he’s ever seen him like this and especially not in the past few weeks. Months.

What did happen with him and Chloe after he got back? 

Dan’s chest hurts again for a minute, and then it passes.

* * *

Lucifer makes dinner again and they’re like weirdly talkative. It’d be mildly unnerving, maybe, except Dan is starting to kind of enjoy Lucifer’s company.

After dinner, Dan FaceTimes Chloe and Trixie on his laptop, setting it on the coffee table while he chats with them on the couch. They talk for a while about Trix’s remote school and what they’re doing to stay busy and making sure Trix and Chlo are feeling okay and whether they need anything. (Apparently Lucifer has been ordering them take-out and groceries and really anything else they need. Of course, even he is no match for the yeast and flour shortage LA is currently experiencing so Chlo and Trix’s experiments in baking are off for now.)

After a while, Trixie gets bored and starts to work on her homework while Chloe and Dan continue to chat.

“How are you holding up?” Chloe asks. In the background, Dan can see their place looks more cluttered than usual. Guess this craziness is taking its toll on everyone.

“I’m fine, really, I mean, it...” Dan starts. And, as if on cue, Lucifer appears from behind him with the thermometer again. “Oh no…”

“Oh, don’t whinge. I’m simply making sure you’re staying well. Detective, is he always this stroppy?” Lucifer chides.

Chloe laughs.

Dan rolls his eyes, but accepts the thermometer.

“So, so far so good?” Chloe asks.

Dan obviously can’t answer, so he assumes that question is for Lucifer.

“I think so. He hasn’t run a fever yet, though there’s been some flushing and coughing. I’m sure it’s inevitable soon...” Lucifer gives him a skeptical look as he takes the thermometer out of Dan’s mouth. “Ah, still normal.”

Dan rolls his eyes again and Chloe gives him a look that he can’t decipher. (Or maybe it’s directed at Lucifer, he has no idea.)

“Any sore throat?” Chloe asks. 

“No…”. Dan is starting to get a little annoyed with the constant stream of questions. He’ll tell them if he starts to actually feel bad. Well, if it’s for any extended period of time. The mild things probably don’t mean anything.

Right?

Lucifer has disappeared again.

“Dan, you have to be careful. The news is saying that people can die after seeming okay and —“. Trixie has come back and now she’s lecturing Dan too. God, what did he do to deserve this?

Lucifer chooses that moment to hook his chin over Dan’s shoulder from behind the couch and peer into Dan’s laptop camera. “Urchin, I promise to keep him in line.” Dan can see Lucifer’s image over his shoulder wink.

The tightness in his chest is starting to get uncomfortable.

And, of course, that’s when Dan’s body decides to erupt into a coughing fit.

Chloe and Trixie have these concerned expressions on their faces, and Lucifer is moving around the couch now so Dan can’t actually see his face anymore, but his tone sounds unsettled. “Daniel?”

Dan can’t catch his breath at the moment.

After what feels like an eternity, it subsides and Dan’s faced with three worried faces. (And like, he expects that from Trix and Chlo, but seeing the fear etched on Lucifer’s face is… almost scarier. Like, if he’s this worried —

No, it’s nothing. Dan’s fine.)

“I’m fine, really.” He wheezes. 

“Be careful Dan…”. Chloe says, softly. “You’ll keep watching him, right?” That’s clearly directed at a Lucifer.

“You have my word.”

“Okay, Trixie, let’s let Daddy and Lucifer rest. Goodnight guys.” Chloe tells them. “Lucifer call me if anything…”

“I will. Goodnight Detective, sleep well Urchin.” Lucifer says to Trixie. Trixie still looks worried. “I promise I will take care of your father.” Lucifer tells her, with a gentleness in his voice Dan didn’t really know he possessed. Man, Trixie’s got him wrapped around her finger too. 

Trixie gets a small smile. “Thanks Luci.” Lucy? She’s got nickname for him too? Maybe he and Chloe are seeing each other.... Why else would Trixie have nicknames for him? “Goodnight Dad, stay well. Love you guys.” 

(Why is Dan even thinking, caring about this?)

“Love you too Monkey, and I’m fine. Really.” Trixie’s smiles a little more. Behind her, Chloe waves. “Bye Chlo.”

Chloe and Trix exchange glances, and Dan’s about to ask what it is when then Trixie blows a kiss at the screen and then hangs up.

Lucifer is kneeling on the floor in between the couch and the coffee table, one arm propped on the couch cushion beside Dan, staring at him.

“I’m _fine_. Really.” Dan tells him.

“I’m not sure I believe you.” Lucifer tells him.

Which is fair, ‘cause if Dan were being totally honest, he’d have to admit his stomach is still bothering him and his chest still aches.

* * *

“So, you should take the bed tonight.” Lucifer informs him a while later. “Or really as long as you need until we’re certain you’re better.”

“Really, that’s not necessary…”. Dan starts.

“You slept terribly, it’s obviously exacerbating your symptoms.” Lucifer tells him. “I tried to order a bed for one of the empty rooms, but it’s apparently impossible in the current situation, no matter how much money I’m willing to throw at it. And I promised your child and the Detective.”

“Look, you don’t have to...”

“I’m afraid I do.” Lucifer pokes him.

Dan’s coughing again.

“See? You’re already getting worse. You’ve had several of these spells.”

“You’re not going to give up, are you?” Dan grumbles.

“Nope.” He pops the ‘p’ when he says it. It’s so obnoxious. “Now be a good cop and take the bed.” 

Dan sighs and goes to get ready for bed.

Lucifer’s bed is fucking huge and really comfortable and it’s… yeah. Dan’s going to stop complaining about how weirdly nice he’s being.

* * *

Lucifer apparently can’t sleep on his couch either. And thanks to the lack of doors and Dan’s newly acquired light sleeping habits, that is meaning Dan also can’t sleep, even in the giant, comfortable bed. Because every movement, every rustle, every groan keeps waking him up.

Dan’s going to go crazy if this keeps up. Or get sick, maybe.

Maybe he already is crazy and sick, since his half-consciousness comes up with a terrible solution. “Okay, we should just share the bed.” Dan says sleepily. He doesn’t even fully realize what he’s saying until it’s out of his mouth.

“Pardon?” Lucifer is standing at the stairs looking… well, scandalized. 

Dan groans. In for a penny… well, he should just get this over with. “Just sleep on the other side. I can’t sleep with all your tossing and rustling and moving out there.”

Besides, the bed is giant, it’s not like they have to cuddle or something. 

(Dan’s sleepy brain wonders if Lucifer is usually a big spoon or a little spoon…

Wait, what the hell is he thinking?)

Lucifer hesitates for a hot second and then sighs and slips under his comforter on the far side of the bed. Dan rolls away from him and tries to fall back asleep.

There’s that weird stomach ache and heavy feeling in his chest again, along with this dryness in his mouth. Dan hopes he wasn’t lying to everyone when he said he was okay.

* * *

It’s not awkward as he feared it would be. The bed is really big — something larger than a king size even, probably something custom for Lucifer’s orgies. 

(How many people has he shared this bed with? Tons, probably. There were like 90 in that one month during that one case and that was years ago. And yeah, since his whatever with Chloe it seems to have slowed, maybe, and there was that year he dated Eve, but…. it’s still probably a lot.

Has Chloe ever slept here? With him?

And, ugh, why is Dan even thinking about any of this?)

Lucifer is already out of bed, his side remade, by the time Dan wakes up. Dan can hear him in the kitchen and he goes to investigate. 

Lucifer’s kind of singing to himself while he makes something on the stove and it's a little endearing. He seems really human, much more real, understandable than Dan’s ever seen.

Even if he is cooking breakfast in a suit.

(Dan wonders what happens when he runs out of his tailored dry cleaning. Dan’s pretty sure tailoring and dry cleaning are not essential businesses. What will Lucifer wear then? 

He snickers, imaging Lucifer reduced to wearing sweatpants and hoodie.

He’ll probably still look like he walked out of a magazine though. Ugh.)

“Ah, Daniel! You’re awake. Breakfast? I have an appointment with Dr. Linda in a bit, I’ll probably take it in one of the empty back rooms, if you wouldn’t mind being scarce during our conversations. Doctor-patient confidentiality and all.” He tells Dan.

Which, sure, whatever. Of course Dan’s not going to eavesdrop on Lucifer’s counseling session, like the guy clearly needs them, and Dan knows from experience meetings with Doctor Martin can get kind of… intense.

“Want to go up against Maze and Eve again later? I feel like we might have a chance to actually beat them today! Or perhaps we could do a movie marathon? I have all the extended editions of all the Body Bags and the Weaponizer movies!” He sounds weirdly cheerful and rambly. 

It’s cute.

(What? Ugh, Dan needs coffee. Kittens are cute. Trixie is cute. Chloe doing silly things is cute. Lucifer is…. Yeah. Something else.)

“Um, sure.” Dan says and then steals a piece of the bacon Lucifer is making. Lucifer swats at him. “Daniel!” He chides and rolls his eyes, turning around to look at Dan. 

He’s wearing a ridiculous “Kiss the Cook” apron, and just…. 

Like, it’s weird. ‘Cause Dan’s always has this image of who Lucifer is in his head and it’s definitely not this. And now he just seems like this regular guy — okay, maybe not regular, since he can eat junk with abandon and oh that whole he-moonlights-in-hell bit and his dad is apparently God, but even that seems more approachable to Dan than the playboy actor jerk he thought Lucifer was for the longest time.

But anyway, he seems so normal and friendly and in such a good mood and, outside of the burning feeling in his chest and the knot in his stomach, Dan is in such a good mood too —

Maybe this quarantine thing won’t be so terrible after all.

* * *

Dan’s starting to get a little concerned, maybe, that he’s standing around the corner from Death’s door. Maybe, just a little.

The sudden flushes, the stomach aches, the temporary shortness of breath…. Dan googles the symptoms (he’s pretty sure Lucifer is too by the way he keeps taking Dan’s temperature), but they keep suggesting it’s probably a cold. Or flu. Or maybe it is corona. (Occasionally he finds something about nervous ticks or embarrassment or something similar, but that doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense in the current situation.)

But Dan doesn’t have a fever, hasn’t lost his sense of smell — he can definitely tell whenever Lucifer is nearby thanks to the scent of his fucking cologne. Why is he even wearing cologne? It’s the middle of a pandemic and he’s stuck inside watching Dan. And it’s not like Dan’s complaining, Lucifer smells, like, good (not that he’s noticing that or anything because it’d be super _weird_ to like intentionally notice how your friend smells, right?), but Dan just doesn’t get it even though it’s turning out to be yet another weird tic of Lucifer’s that is almost endearing.

Like Dan said, it’s all weird.

So Dan keeps googling his symptoms and watching out, hoping he can find some definitive thing so he can stop thinking about it.

He posts his symptoms on reddit while giving Lucifer space so he can have his meeting with Doctor Martin. Dan expects it’ll end with everyone telling him he has cancer, corona, and maybe ebola and that he’s definitely going to die, but what the hell. 

Someone PMs him to ask if it’s situational. Dan’s not sure what that means. “Do you only get it when you’re around a chick you like or something? Because it kind of sounds like you just have a crush.” The PM back reads.

Dan rolls his eyes, annoyed at wasting three minutes of his life on that ridiculous tangent. There’s not even anyone else here! Sure, he FaceTimes with Chlo and Trix twice a day or so (usually with Lucifer freaking crashing the call, but his antics are starting to become almost a comforting routine instead of an annoyance), but Dan’s sure he’s not into Chloe like that anymore.

Someone else suggests it’s probably just anxiety and that seems more likely, so Dan chalks it up to that. Or maybe he does have the cancer, corona, and ebola. Who knows.

* * *

Okay, Dan’s pretty sure he’s going to die. It’s the middle of the night and Dan can’t stop his mind from racing. The video games and movies worked for a while, but here in the dark with nothing to distract him and Lucifer asleep, it’s all creeping across Dan’s mind. 

He found out earlier that one of the guards who had helped restrain Dan’s corona-infected perp has the plague too, and he’s now sitting in Cedar’s Sinai ICU. Dan hopes he’s not going to join him soon. But his chest feels so tight and it’s just overwhelming. He can’t escape this feeling of doom and existential dread and his lungs won’t fucking take in air no matter how hard he tries.

“Daniel?” In the distance he can hear Lucifer’s voice, but it’s dark and Dan can’t breathe.

And, oh, this is so not what he needs right now. Sure, Lucifer has been less asshole-y, nicer, _friendly_ even the past few days, but Dan’s either melting down or dying right now. Or possibly both. And having Lucifer witness it so he can tease Dan about it later? (Since, you know, even if Dan dies, Lucifer is still going to be able to fuck with him and all.) Well, that is the second worst thing Dan can think of right now.

The first, of course, being how he can’t get in a deep breath and this is probably the beginning of the end.

“Dan!” Lucifer’s voice actually sounds kind of panicky. Then like a switch it flips to something completely opposite. “You need to calm down, you’re hyperventilating.” He says soothingly. “Try to slow down…”

Dan can’t seem to stop though and he can’t see anymore which is probably a bad sign. He feels like he might pass out. God, he’s going to die.

He feels warm hands touching his back. It's a nice feeling.

“Dan. Dan.” Lucifer is trying to get his attention. Dan turns his head a little and Lucifer is sitting next to him, half hugging him, and Dan can hear his voice, counting maybe.

“There you go, just breathe in… and out…. Right, you’re okay.”

It’s dark and Lucifer is still touching him, like Dan can feel his chest against his back and his arms wrapped around him and something in his body reacts to the proximity and the lack of oxygen and just…

Dan shifts out of Lucifer’s grasp, uncomfortable. (He can’t actually be getting turned on by this, that would be so fucked up. It’s just some weird combination of stimuli and that Dan hasn’t been physically touched like that in weeks, maybe months and just—)

Ugh, this is embarrassing.

“I’m okay, uh... sorry for waking you up.” He croaks out and hopes Lucifer doesn’t switch on the lights or move any closer. 

(God, he still smells good.)

“I should take your temperature again, just in case.” Lucifer starts to stand, but Dan grabs his arm before he fully gets up.

“No, please…. I’m just flipping out because Medicino got sick from handling the perp and…”. Dan trails off. 

At least his body is back under control again. Fucking hell that was weird.

“Can we just go back to bed and forget this happened?” Dan rasps. God, tonight was a nightmare.

In the dim light, he can see Lucifer nod, and then Lucifer slides back over to his side of the bed. He doesn’t turn away like he usually does and Dan can feel him staring.

Dan climbs back under the covers and turns his back to Lucifer and wills his body to sleep. 

It’s not working and the panic is starting to creep back, and Dan has this urge to sit up, run, do something so his skin stops crawling and his mind stops racing —

The bed shifts a little and Dan feels a warm hand slowly drawing circles on his back. It’s… comforting.

His mind starts to focus on the sensation and drift, peacefully…

(It turns out Lucifer is a big spoon, and they both completely pretend it didn’t happen when they wake up with Lucifer pressed against Dan’s back the next morning.)

* * *

The reddit message lingers in the back of Dan’s mind. It takes two more days for Dan to really realize it and when he does, he’s horrified, can’t believe he’s even considering the possibility. It takes another day before he’ll actually admit it in his head. (He will never say it out loud, and definitely not ever while he’s here. _Never_.)

He likes Lucifer. _Likes_ him. Wants to…. he doesn’t know exactly. Stare at him at least, apparently. Listen to his voice. Feel his —

Okay, that’s enough. It’s silly, this dumb _crush._ It’ll go away if he stops feeding it. He hopes. Dan’s not usually attracted to guys. Like, sure he’s seen dudes and been like ‘wow, he’s good looking’ or whatever, and he’s not opposed to watching well built guys in porn, but…. They don’t usually give him butterflies or make his heart race or his mouth dry. 

(He’s pretty sure he hasn’t had a crush on a guy since college or maybe his first year as a cop. He’d kind of hoped that whole possibility had gone away, that it was a product of drinking too much or something, to be honest. I mean, he’d had a good run with Chloe and Charlotte. And he grew up Catholic, so he’s pretty good at repression of all stripes. Plus Lucifer is so far from Dan’s usual type, it’s….)

How long has he...? Is that why he finds Lucifer so irritating? 

Dan shuts down that thought process. That can’t be it. 

No, this has got to be like Stockholm syndrome. Right? It’s got to go away soon. He’s only on day 4 of being stuck here. There’s still at least a week to go. 

It has to go away soon.

He groans into his pillow and hears Lucifer shift far away on the other side of the bed.

God, this was weird, maybe he should just sleep on the couch no matter how uncomfortable it is or how big this bed is.


	3. I’ll Be Your Lucky Star

It’s not going away.

If anything, their close proximity coupled with Lucifer’s being way, way, way too nice is making it worse. So much worse.

Half way through quarantine and Dan can’t stop thinking about it. Him. Can’t stop imagining....

Between it and Dan’s anxiety — well, his ‘symptoms’ keep getting worse. Which makes Lucifer do his nurse act more, which makes Dan’s mind reach in directions he’s trying desperately to avoid and it’s just —

Weird.

Part of Dan is relieved that soon this should be over (one way or another) and then he can go back to his own place and shelter-in-place (or get stuck in the hospital alone). At least then he won’t have to worry about Lucifer finding out anymore. Hopefully then his dumb crush will fade and Dan won’t think about it any more and he can chalk it up to just some situational anomaly. He’ll get back to dating women and it’ll be normal and fine and, bonus, then he doesn’t have to worry about what is happening with Chloe and Lucifer.

And then there’s this other part of Dan that doesn't want the time to end because he actually likes this now, likes Lucifer’s company…. Enjoys the opportunities to stare and maybe daydream a little and is almost half-hoping his interest might be reciprocated, that something might happen.

And then another (bigger?) part of Dan is still freaked out over the possibility he might be sick, might be a ticking biological time bomb. And there’s nothing anyone can do about it. (At least Dan doesn’t have to worry about getting Lucifer sick. Which he’s really, really glad about now.)

It’s all … yeah. Weird?

* * *

Dan doesn’t realize he’s doing it at first. It’s unconscious, maybe. Lucifer is making breakfast one morning when Dan catches himself.

“I haven’t made coffee yet, you’ll have to give me a few moments.” Lucifer tells Dan when he walks into the kitchen. Lucifer is standing in front of the stove, making something.

“Really man, I think I can handle that.” Dan tells him, grabbing Lucifer’s shoulder. He leans forward to grab the kettle and kind of teasingly pushes Lucifer to the side a bit.

Lucifer seems taken aback and gives Dan a sideways glance for a split second. Dan smiles when they make eye contact and then Lucifer smiles back. “That’d be lovely.” Dan is still touching him and standing close, too close maybe, for way longer than is necessary. 

He feels… giddy.

Dan fills the kettle and then walks back over to the stove to put it on. Lucifer shifts to the left as Dan approaches. It’s enough that Dan probably could avoid touching him, if he wanted. Except…

That’s not really what he wants.

So Dan leans over to the stove, brushing his left shoulder and arm against the back of Lucifer’s right side. Lucifer shifts more and gives him a look. Dan isn’t sure what it means. “What are you making?” Dan queries, kind of leaning more to the left to look at Lucifer as he asks. It increases the contact of their upper bodies. Dan’s chest is definitely touching Lucifer’s back, even his left hip is light brushing Lucifer’s —

Lucifer freezes.

And that’s when Dan realizes what he’s doing. He’s being touchy feely. He’s flirting. With Lucifer. His body is starting to react to the proximity too and —

Fuck. Is he making this weird? (Weirder?) Is he making Lucifer uncomfortable? That would be shitty. (And like part of him thinks like he should get satisfaction from that idea — revenge for all the times Lucifer has been a dick to him — but instead he just feels mortified by the prospect.)

Dan starts to step away when Lucifer leans closer and whispers, practically purrs into his ear “You’ll find out soon.”

And then Lucifer gracefully steps away to grab something out of the pantry.

Dan busies himself with grinding coffee beans and putting together the Chemex while the water is heating and prays to — well, he has no idea who, definitely not Lucifer’s dad — that he can keep his dick under control.

Why is this happening to him? And what the hell did Lucifer's reaction mean? Was he flirting back? Was he just messing with Dan? 

Could he tell? Did he know?

“Daniel?” Lucifer is behind him, suddenly, it seems. “I supposed that’s a ‘no’?” He’s reaching into a drawer next to Dan’s hip on one side and pulls out a spatula and then pauses and reaches up into a cabinet on the other side of Dan. It pushes him against Dan and Dan into the counter. And, fuck, now Dan’s never going to stop imagining turning around and just —

He has to stop thinking like this.

“Erm?” Dan finally chokes out, fighting down the blush he can feel rising. God.

“I was asking if you’d move but — “ Lucifer starts, kind of sing-songy, but then his voice changes abruptly. “Are you alright?” He sounds more concerned and he’s pulling Dan around.

Which is really poor timing, because Dan is definitely not okay and if Lucifer leans against him again, it’s going to be very obvious exactly what’s wrong. (“Detective, did you bring your gun with you or are you just happy to see me?” Dan’s overactive imagination pictures Lucifer saying, like Dan’s in some kind of awfully acted porno. 

And that thought is obviously not helping anything, not at all.)

“How long have you felt feverish?” Lucifer asks, accusingly.

“I’m fine, no fever.” Dan kind of gasps. (He’s unconvincing.)

Lucifer scurries off to find that damn thermometer, and Dan slumps against the counter and tries to breathe and get himself under control.

How was he going to last another week of this? He was going to embarrass himself for sure at this rate and then…

And then what? His mind taunts. Lucifer kicks him out? Lucifer teases him mercilessly? Lucifer fu—. Okay that’s exactly the road he’s not supposed to be letting his mind go down, because nothing good is going to come of that.

God, at least if he could get out of here he could explore this stupid fantasy in peace without worrying about Lucifer fucking walking in on him since the dude has no fucking doors.

Speaking of which, how was Lucifer not going crazy with this situation? He was averaging 2 or 3 partners a day for a while. And now, he’s trapped here, being celibate, with Dan? He hasn’t left as far as Dan knows since they got here 6 days ago.

Maybe he’s working things out in the shower, maybe he doesn’t care if Dan walks in on him — and woah, Dan is cutting off that line of thought there. (But part of him does wonder how Lucifer would react: would he be embarrassed? Nonchalant? Would he invite Dan — )

Ugh. His hormones were in overdrive.

Or was that what Lucifer’s “sessions with Doctor Linda”’ are about? Maybe it’s really him watching porn or something. Though if he’s just watching chicks, Dan kind of wonders why he wouldn’t do it around him. Like, he used to do that with his high school and college friends, sometimes and it was no big deal. 

Or maybe Lucifer watches dudes and —

Dan’s body is responding again. And he’s maybe jealous of that idea, and he hates that he’s self aware enough to know it’s jealousy.

Fuck, he needs to get back under control. Lucifer is coming back with his medical torture instrument and he’s going to shove it Dan’s mouth again, and Dan can’t keep thinking he’d prefer if he shoved other things in his mouth and —

Dan’s blushing furiously now. He doesn’t even know where that idea came from. He’s never done that, never gone down on another guy, and yet he kind of likes the idea, at least if it’s with Lucifer.

“Here we go, I’m positive you’re actually getting sick now. You’re behaving very oddly. Even for you.” Lucifer says as he offers Dan the thermometer.

Dan opens his mouth and sticks out his tongue.

Lucifer raises his eyebrows.

So Dan acts completely logically and ducks down to grab the thermometer with his mouth, instead of, you know, grabbing it with his hands, like Lucifer was clearly intending him to do.

Lucifer gives him an unreadable look, but doesn’t comment on it.

After a minute, Dan takes the thermometer out of his own mouth and looks at it. It’s like 99.6. Maybe slightly elevated, but it’s probably nothing.

Lucifer is grabbing his wrist to look at it too. (How does he have such soft hands? Is that a devil thing? Dan’s wrist feels tingly.)

“It’s high. That’s a symptom, correct? Maybe we should take you to the hospital? Would they test you for that?” Lucifer is kind of rambling. He looks nervous.

“I don’t think they’re going to test me for just that.”

“Maybe I could call in a favor…”

“Dude, they’re just going to send me home even if I’m positive. I can head home if I’m putting you out, though, really, I know this has to be…”. Dan trails off.

“Absolutely not. You stay. What if you took a sudden turn for the worst?” Lucifer looks affronted. 

At least then Dan would die in his own bed and without embarrassing himself?

But Lucifer is already busying himself in the kitchen again, finishing the coffee and pulling out really fancy looking waffle things from the oven.

He looks super serious.

Dan catches his arm after he sets the stuff on the counter. “Hey, man, really, I appreciate your being so…”. Dan can’t even find the words, doesn’t know what to call this.

“Daniel, what happens if —”

“Luce, I’m fine. Really. And we’ll deal with it if I’m not…”. We’ll? Well, he guess it is a team effort at this point, they’re kind of in this together. 

* * *

Dan’s doing it again. They’re sitting at the table.

“So are these the surprise?” He asks Lucifer. They’re waffles, but with like caramel and crystallized sugar. And they taste amazing, even though Dan’s definitely going to need to spend all day in the gym to make up for this.

He totally accidentally bumps Lucifer’s hand while getting more coffee.

“They’re called ‘liege waffles’ and yes.” Lucifer grins. “So you like them?”

“I’m a little bitter I may have to hand over the waffle king title to you, to be honest.” Dan says back to him, looking him in the eyes. With the way they’re sitting, Dan keeps accidentally hitting his leg against Lucifer’s under the table too.

“You know, I’ve never had your waffles. The Detective and mum always told me they were quite good though…”. Lucifer muses. He’s still making eye contact with Dan while they talk.

Dan realizes he’s kind of chewing on his lip while he listens to Lucifer.

“Maybe I’ll have to make them for you, sometime…” Dan hears himself offer.

“Oh? You’ll do that for me?” Lucifer leans forward a little and his knee is definitely touching Dan’s leg.

“I mean, you are quarantine-sitting me and all, it’s probably the least I can do.”

“Well, if that’s an insufficient trade, I’m sure we could work out some other sort of exchange.” Then he winks, reaches over and pats Dan’s thigh.

Dan chokes on his coffee.

Was he —?

Lucifer has a mischievous grin on his face as he watches Dan. Well, at least he isn’t accusing him of having more symptoms although at the moment, that might be preferable. So yeah, that probably was intentional. But is he just trying to make Dan uncomfortable or is he actually interested?

God, Dan’s even worse at deciphering this now than he is with chicks usually.

After a moment, Dan is able to breathe again. But Lucifer is already getting up and acting like nothing has happened and so… maybe this is all just Dan’s imagination?

* * *

They’re playing Call of Duty when he catches himself doing it. Yet again.

“Dude, you’re supposed to hit the other people, not me. I’m on your team!” Dan teases Lucifer then elbows him.

Lucifer elbows Dan back and glares. But in that not serious way, Dan thinks.

RestingCopFace gets killed by friendly fire again.

Lucifer does this thing when he’s playing where he moves the controller in the same way he’s trying to get Fall1n1 to move, sometimes accompanied by full on body movements and twists. It kind of reminds Dan of how Trixie plays video games and it’s… 

Really cute.

No.

Distracting. Very distracting. Especially when Dan has to watch out for fire from Eve and Maze AND freaking Lucifer. And he has to watch out in real life so he doesn’t get smacked in the face. 

(Why is he sitting so close to Lucifer anyway? How did that happen? Did he move or did Lucifer? 

Dan thinks it’s probably a little of both, he thinks they both started closer to their respective ends of the couch and now they’re both near the center. Does it mean something that Lucifer is getting closer to him? Or is it just because he’s incapable of sitting still while he plays?

Why is Dan thinking about this so much?)

Dan decides to sit on the floor in front of the couch, which makes it less likely Lucifer will bump into him and has the added benefit of putting Lucifer behind Dan so Dan can stop being so… distracted.

It also puts more distance between them so Dan can stop accidently touching him and smiling at him and generally acting like some smitten school child.

(“Smitten school child”? That sounds more like something _he_ would say than like something Dan would. God, being cooped up together is causing Lucifer to rub off on him in so many ways.

And not in any the way Dan wants. Ugh.)

Dan puts his face on his knees and hopes he isn’t blushing too badly at that thought.

Lucifer is too distracted avoiding Maze in the game to notice so it works out.

“Bloody hell, Mazikeen, I’m your King, you’re supposed to protect— ahhh!”

You’d think Lucifer was actually getting shot with the way he’s acting.

Dan leans back against the couch and watches as Maze takes him out. Eve and she still have a team of teenagers to take out before they win.

Lucifer throws down the controller onto the couch in disgust. “Seriously, she has it out for me! I swear, it’s as if she stalks me first! And you’re not there to give me cover!”

“ _You_ shot _me_ , dude! That’s why I was out and couldn’t provide cover, remember?”

“Sure, sure, blame the devil.” Lucifer rolls his eyes at Dan, but the words sound playful.

Dan kind of leans over and they’re both just watching Maze and Eve stalk the remaining players on the screen. It takes a few minutes for Dan to even realize he’d done it again, maybe worse this time because he’s basically leaning against Lucifer’s leg and Dan’s head is half on one of Lucifer’s thighs and…

Luce is definitely reciprocating, though, because he’s got one hand kind of haphazardly running through Dan’s hair and Dan’s mind goes blank and his throat seizes up as he realizes it.

Dan shifts his view upwards now and he’s staring, definitely. Unsure of how to react. He wants…

(Lucifer’s face is intently watching the television screen. Dan wonders if he even realizes what he’s doing. His hand is still in Dan’s hair, even at the new angle. Lucifer’s eye lashes are so long and his stubble is a little longer than usual and Dan can’t help but wonder how it would feel against his skin…

His hand feels nice in Dan’s hair...

Fuck this is bad.)

Dan starts coughing and it seems to jolt Lucifer out of his television trance and he pulls away his hand as Dan stands up and dashes out of the room to the bathroom. 

(Dan can see him staring at his hand like it’s betrayed him. Or maybe that’s Dan’s imagination.)

Fortunately, when Dan gets back, Lucifer doesn’t say anything about whatever just happened and Dan doesn’t bring it up either.

* * *

Dan asks about it on reddit, later, while Lucifer is on one of his zoom calls with Doctor Martin. Which in retrospect was a terrible, terrible idea, but he doesn’t know what to do and the indecision coupled with the anxiety of worrying if he’s sick is eating at him. R/relationshipadvice ftw.

(Dan should probably just get his own appointment with Doctor Martin. Maybe via text because he’s already promised himself he will never admit this… this… this _thing…_ out loud. Especially not here where he might hear.)

The responses are overwhelming. Everyone thinks Dan’s a dumbass.

> ‘Let me get this straight: He volunteered to quarantine with you, he makes you dinner, he’s sharing his bed with you, he’s spooning you, he’s flirting with you. Are you an idiot? Of course he’s into you.’  
>    
> 

> ‘This can’t be real. If it is: Jesus, fuck him already. The world is ending, what do you have to lose?’

The sentiment is widely shared that Dan is being stupid and that he should do something. It’s fucking trending on the popular posts after a few hours.

Except like…. They’re probably wrong. And the more Dan thinks about it, the more he realizes that. He couldn’t explain everything the right way. He left out too many relevant details. Because Lucifer is the Devil and there’s that whole thing he has with Chloe, Dan’s ex-wife, and Dan can’t really explain the real reason Lucifer has ended up watching him and so of course it makes it sound more like…. something else than what it actually, probably, is. 

(Plus, even if Lucifer would sleep with him, that doesn’t mean anything. Like, he sleeps with tons of people.

Would that bother Dan? Sure he’s had one night stands — hell, more than one of his relationships had started that way — but never with like his friends. Or at least they became friends or girlfriends after. Not…. like this. They weren’t friends first.

Is Lucifer his friend?)

“What are you doing on there?” Lucifer asks, sneaking up behind him.

Dan jumps like ten feet on the patio chair he’s laying on. 

“N-n-nothing.” So fucking guilty sounding.

“What are you reading?” Lucifer is looking at his phone. At the freaking reddit thread about him. Them. That includes things Dan wasn’t ever going to say, wasn’t ever going to admit —

“Just reddit.” He stutters.

“Anything good?” Lucifer is sitting beside him and starts to light a cigarette.

“Dude, that’s probably not a good idea…”

Lucifer’s eyes get wide for a second and then he puts out the cigarette. “Ah, right. Probably not good for your breathing, hm?” 

(To be fair, nothing about Lucifer is good for Dan’s breathing lately.)

“So what are you reading?” Lucifer leans over to see what’s on Dan’s phone. Dan is still too shocked to have put it away or changed the freaking screen.

Lucifer’s eyes briefly scan the comments currently on Dan’s screen. “What is this drivel? Is it advice?” His eyes shift to Dan. “Are you giving relationship advice?” He smiles like that’s some kind of very amusing joke. (He’s such an ass.)

“No!” Dan’s breath intake is quick. “I just like reading them. It’s…. funny.”

“Oh? May I?”

Dan’s hands are sweating as Lucifer plucks the phone out of his hand and starts to scroll through the comments. (Thank god Dan used an anonymous alias for his post and he’s logged out.) He’s watching as Lucifer reads. Lucifer’s face briefly flashes in this weird way after a minute and Dan wonders if he’s figured it out.

“I don’t understand.”

Dan’s heart is beating really fast.

“It’s uh, I …”. Dan feels like he swallowed his tongue.

“Is it because the author is idiotic?”

“What?”

Lucifer gives him a quizzical look as he hands Dan back his phones. “Clearly their friend is interested. Is that why it’s amusing?”

Dan’s mouth is dry. Really? Even he thinks Dan is an idiot for this? But... does he know it’s about them? Is he trying to tell Dan something? Dan can’t tell. 

(And wouldn’t he be, like, mocking Dan if he did know? Unless…

Does he like Dan? 

No. No way.)

Lucifer starts to light his cigarette again and then casually looks at Dan like he’s expecting Dan to continue the conversation. 

But Dan can’t make his mouth work.

“Oh bollocks, I’m doing it again.” Lucifer stands up and starts to move to the other end of the balcony.

“Hey, um, why don’t I just go inside while you…”. Dan gestures like he’s smoking and Lucifer shrugs.

How is Dan supposed to interpret all this?

* * *

Dan keeps pacing in the living room. His mind keeps replaying Lucifer’s ‘the author is idiotic’ and ‘clearly their friend is interested.’ Over. And over.

He sighs.

Even if — and it’s a big if given how much he left out and all — Luce was maybe interested in him, there’s still a big elephant in the room.

Well, not in the room because she’s at her house with Trixie and —

And she’s not an elephant! Ugh, Chloe was pretty chill about all that crazy girl stuff, but Dan still doubts she would like being called an elephant.

He needs to know. If she’s with him, it’s an easy answer. He can’t do anything. Would never. And they probably _are_ , so that should fix everything. Then Dan can get over this stupid, increasingly obsessive crush once he knows Luce is off limits. 

He hesitates typing, but finally just does it.

> **Dan (16:02)** : Hey, can I ask you a weird question.
> 
> **Chloe (16:03)** : what?
> 
> **Dan (16:04)** : This isn’t any of my business, but are you and Lucifer dating?
> 
> **Chloe (16:04)** : What????
> 
> **Chloe (16:04):** No.
> 
> **Chloe (16:04)** : LOL. Why would you even think that?
> 
> **Dan (16:05)** : …

Chloe calls him a minute later.

“Did he say something? Because, we’d tried that when he first got back and it just didn’t…” Chloe cuts off. “We’re just better as friends. I mean, I know he didn’t like that at first, but I really thought we were past that now. It’s been months.” She sounds a little worried. 

Okay, so they’re not actually together. And that sounds like Chloe is over him at least. 

(Is he over her? Does Dan even care? If it’s just fwb in corona isolation, does it matter if the friend is still in love with his ex-wife?

Woah, is he actually entertaining that idea?

God, Dan’s life is so _weird_.)

“No, he didn’t, I just wanted to… know”. Dan’s trying to decide if he should just tell her. God, he said he wasn’t going to ever say this, but he’s desperate to have someone to bounce the idea off of who isn’t a sixteen year old on reddit. Chloe always has the level head. Like, if she says he’s just getting Stockholm syndrome and he should let it pass, then he’ll know that’s for sure what’s happening.

“Everything going okay over there?” Chloe asks, suddenly sounding suspicious. “Is he being… Lucifer-y?”

“What? I’m not even sure what that means.” Dan looks over towards the balcony. Lucifer is still out there nursing a cigarette and staring off into the LA skyline.

“It sounds like something’s wrong.”

“N-no. I …”. Has Dan always been such a terrible liar?

“I swear if he’s decided he’s bored now and is trying to have orgies or women over while he’s supposed to be isolating with you, I’ll…”. Chloe is starting to sound angry. And that’s making Dan feel guilty because Lucifer has been like… the complete opposite.

“No, no! Nothing like that.” Dan manages to get out. “It’s ….”. The last thing he wants is for Chloe to think Lucifer has done something wrong because in some weird twist of fate, he’s…. okay, maybe him being ridiculously nice to Dan is wrong. It was so much easier when he was always just an asshole —

(Was he always an asshole? Or did Dan just get extra irritated at all the teasing because he was jealous? Jealous that Chloe preferred Lucifer —

Or was that it? Was he maybe jealous Lucifer preferred —

Oh, this Stockholm syndrome is majorly going to his head. )

“Dan? You trailed off.”

Dan’s staring out the window at _him_ on the balcony. He has this far away look.

“What? Oh, it’s nothing. Really, Lucifer is being fine, I just... feel bad he’s stuck here with me instead of you. And that you don’t get your… partner.”

Chloe laughs. “I mean, it was his suggestion someone stay with you and he volunteered after checking on some stuff back in…. you know… so….”

Huh? Dan thought this whole thing was Chloe’s idea. 

“He just feels guilty I got exposed…”. He explains, more to himself than Chloe.

“Maybe? Or he wanted a friend who’ll watch those terrible movies with him.” Dan can hear Chloe’s nose wrinkling in disgust as she says it. She always hated the Body Bags and Weaponizer movies. “Either way, I doubt he’d be spending that much time with me even if you weren’t there….”

“Your his….”. Dan doesn’t know what to call them. If they’re not dating, were they just like best friends or something? Maybe? Was that it? 

Whatever it was. “He likes being around you.” Dan finishes.

“Sure, but that whole mortality issue really throws a wrench in things. And we have no idea how that works with viruses and stuff…”. Chloe clarifies.

Right. Dan had forgotten about that whole complication. 

“Anyway, it’s sweet of you to worry about, but it was never really in the cards, so…”. She trails off for a moment. “How are you guys? Really? Is he driving you crazy yet?” The last sentence sounds more like normal Chloe.

Yeah, he is, but not in the way Dan expected when they talked him into this arrangement.

“Really, he’s been weirdly… nice.” Maybe Dan will tell her, when they work up to it. Maybe. “It’s unnerving.”

Chloe laughs. “You sound so surprised.”

“He hates me!” It slips out. Dan’s not actually sure that’s true anymore.

“He’s never hated you, stop it.” Chloe pauses. “Well, maybe when you first met. But since he’s gotten to know you—”

“Chlo, he’s been stealing my pudding and playing practical jokes on me since…”. Dan starts to cut her off, but she starts laughing. “What?”

“He’s like a kid. He teases you because he doesn’t hate you.”

“What?” That hits him like a ton of bricks. 

Like, Dan’s always been kind of jealous of Lucifer (he thinks?) especially before he knew about the whole.. Devil thing…. But he’s always kind of liked the dude too. He’s charming and good looking and kind of funny, sometimes, when it’s not at his expense. But he’s always thought Lucifer disliked him. Tolerated him because of Chlo and Trix. Like, he always comes through when it really matters, he’s always saved Chloe and Trixie and even… him.

Oh.

“Daniel?” Lucifer is back in the penthouse. Who knows for how long. Dan had stopped staring at him at some point.

“Oh, can you put Lucifer on for a minute?” Chloe asks at the same time. 

“What? Uh, sure just.. don’t… you know.” Dan is rambling. Lucifer gives him a confused look as Dan hands his phone over.

“Chlo.”

Lucifer brightens at that. “Ah, Detective. How can I help you?” He listens for a moment. “I didn’t realize.” He’s eyeing Dan suspiciously. What the fuck was Chloe telling him?? “Right, of course, I will figure out something.” Another pause. “Oh, certainly, that would work.” He chuckles a little and Dan is wondering what they could possibly be discussing. At least Lucifer doesn’t seem annoyed so Chloe’s probably not yelling at him. (And he doesn’t seem forlorn or love sick or something so…)

A second later Lucifer says “Ta-ta, Detective. You can trust me.” And then he’s handing the phone back to Dan and doing that fucking wink and Dan feels like he’s the only one that doesn’t know what’s going on.

* * *

Lucifer makes them dinner again. It’s amazingly good, like always.

And then they watch another Weaponizer movie, until it’s time to sleep. And then they crawl into Lucifer’s oversized bed and try to steadfastly ignore the other’s presence. Well, Dan does at least. Lucifer just seems to be sleeping like a normal person.

(Lucifer keeps offering to sleep on the couch, but Dan knows how freaking uncomfortable it is so he’s not going to ask him to do that.

Luce also said he’d ordered another bed for one of the empty guest rooms, but the ship date keeps getting pushed out, so who knows if it’ll get here before Dan’s quarantine is up in 6 more days. They’d tried an air mattress too, but that had sprung a leak in less than a day so it was out too.

It’s too much, all of it is really, but Lucifer insists.)


	4. If You Promise That You’ll Never Let Me Go

Lucifer has woken up before Dan basically every day since Dan started staying here. Except today. Today, Dan somehow manages to be up first. Or at least awake first.

He’s not actually up yet, because he’s super comfortable and the bed is soft and he’s covered in cozy blankets and wrapped around warm skin and —

Wait. 

Dan blinks and shifts. Yeah, he’s definitely pressed up against another body. 

Lucifer.

Oh shit.

Has Dan been doing this every night? Ever since that one night?He’d never know if he was. Lucifer always wakes up before him. Surely he would have said something though? (‘Daniel, keep your hands to yourself.’ Or some joke about how all he needs to do is ask… Or something? Of course, they’re kind of on Dan’s side of the bed, so…. This isn’t entirely his fault. Unless Dan like grabbed him and dragged him over here. Which given the way Dan’s got his arm locked around Luce’s waist is a distinct possibility.)

Well, this is awkward.

Dan tries to very carefully move his arm without waking Lucifer. 

So far, so good.

Then he starts to carefully move out of the covers and off the bed. Lucifer whimpers when their skin stops touching, and for a moment Dan is really, really tempted to just stay and pretend to be asleep. 

But he really really wants to make breakfast today, maybe more so now.

(God, Lucifer looks peaceful asleep. Beautiful. Can a dude even be beautiful? Well, if anyone can, it’s definitely Luce with his dark curls and alabaster skin and perfect features.)

Dan finally pulls himself away from the warmth of the bed and heads, quietly, to Lucifer’s kitchen.

After borrowing an apron and a bunch of ingredients, Dan gets to work. He’s got the coffee made and the waffles finishing, and bacon started by the time Lucifer rolls into the kitchen, perfectly dressed.

“About time you got up.” Dan grins at him. 

Lucifer looks surprised for a minute and then smiles back. “Well, aren’t you the early bird this morning?” He moves to grab coffee from the Chemex on the counter and then stares at Dan.

Dan can feel his gaze on him and it’s… weird.

“What?” He finally asks.

Lucifer strolls up to him, grabs a piece of bacon, and then pecks Dan in the cheek. “Thanks darling.”

Dan’s brain short circuits. His mind is flashing all kinds of scenarios and he has no idea how to read what just happened. No idea how to react.

“W-what?” He croaks. His face is flaming now. He can feel it.

Lucifer is casually sipping his coffee and looking at his phone as if nothing happened. As if this didn’t mean anything.

“Hm? Thank you for making breakfast. I can’t wait to try the waffles. You’re quite good at bacon.” He doesn’t even look up at Dan as he says it, but he holds up his half eaten bacon like it’s evidence.

Dan’s still just staring at him, bewildered.

Lucifer looks up, finally.

“Why do you look as if I kicked your puppy?”

“Y-you...k-ki..”. Dan can’t even say it. It’s funny, he’s been basically fantasizing about it for the last 4 days, and it happened, finally. But it wasn’t at all like he imagined. Lucifer doesn’t even seem to have noticed he did it. And now?

Lucifer’s eyebrows crease and his head cocks to the side and he looks confused and like _Dan_ is the one acting weird. His eyes wander up and down Dan again, like he’s trying to figure something out and briefly Dan wonders if he’s dreaming again or in some weird alternate universe where maybe this is just normal.

Dan touches his cheek. It did happen, right? Lucifer’s eyes widen, almost imperceptibly, for a split second, then he looks away.

“Maybe next time you should bring your own apron, hm?” He smirks and goes back to reading his phone and drinking his coffee.

What? That’s the worst pick up line ever. Why would Dan bring his own apron? 

Then he remembers he’s borrowed Lucifer’s. ‘Kiss the Cook’ it reads. “Oh fuck me.” Dan breaths and then turns to press his forehead into an upper cabinet.

“Don’t make offers you don’t want to be taken up on.” Lucifer says cheekily. Dan can hear him moving behind him, and there’s this instant where Dan is tempted to turn around and see if he means that, if —

No. 

He doesn’t. He isn’t into Dan, he just gets off on making him miserable and embarrassed. Fucking figures. Why did Dan ever think for a minute things were at all different?

Dan pulls off the apron and stomps out, past Lucifer who is already sitting at the table eating one of the waffles with more bacon. Lucifer looks like he’s about to make another one of his smartass jokes and Dan just... can’t. 

He keeps going and briefly sees Lucifer’s face fall out of the corner of his eye, but he’s too angry, too annoyed, fine, too embarrassed, to even try to do anything with it.

Dan is basically running at this point. He doesn’t know where or why or what. There’s no doors in this place, nowhere to hide.

God, was this torture ever going to end? Did he die already? Was this the loop he’d be sentenced to?

Dan’s sitting in the bed, staring out the window, contemplating, when he hears a knock on the outside of the room.

“Dude, you don’t even have a door.” Dan grumbles.

“Still.” Lucifer sighs. “I sense I’ve made some sort of error.” Lucifer is walking into the room, up the stairs and over to the part of the bed Dan is sitting on. “And I don’t want to make it worse…”

Dan rolls his eyes. “Sure.”

Now Lucifer looks like he’s the kicked puppy. 

“Right, well then, I’ll um…”. He starts to leave. He pauses by the entrance. Dan wishes he could push him down the stairs. (Or kiss him. He’s not sure which and it so fucking annoying and confusing.)

“I quite liked your waffles.” Lucifer says suddenly. “Thank you again, I apologize for…well, erm, I wasn’t…”. He stops talking. 

He’s pulling on his fucking cuff links. And Dan would almost think it’s a nervous tick or something, except it’s Lucifer, and Dan’s pretty sure the guy wouldn’t know what ‘nervous’ meant even if he was reading it out of the dictionary.

Lucifer gives him this like, _look_ , and then he leaves. Dan can see him out the window a few minutes later smoking a cigarette on the balcony and agitatedly talking on the phone.

Dan sighs and goes to grab a waffle while Lucifer is distracted doing... whatever.

Then he goes to take a nice long, hot shower in Lucifer’s ridiculous bathroom and wish this week was already over.

* * *

By the time Dan is out of the shower, Lucifer has disappeared. He’s not anywhere in the penthouse. 

Dan’s actually a little freaked. Dan can’t leave. Lucifer wasn’t supposed to and, to his credit, he hasn’t so far so Dan doubts he’d start today. Is Lucifer... okay? Could something have happened?

Dan’s tempted to call Chloe, but, as much as Lucifer drives him crazy, he doesn’t want to sell him out if he did just bounce for a while. But… if that’s not what happened —

Dan swallows his pride and texts Lucifer.

> **Daniel (10:57)** : are you okay?
> 
> **Obnoxious** **Asshole (10:57)** : 👍
> 
> **Daniel (10:58)** : where are you?
> 
> **Obnoxious** **Asshole (10:58)** : 🔝

What is that supposed to mean? Dan presses the heel of his hand into his eye socket. He’s getting such a headache. 

> **Daniel (11:00)** : I don’t speak cryptic emoji.
> 
> **Obnoxious** **Asshole (11:01)** : 🤷🤷🤷 

Dan rolls his eyes.

> **Obnoxious** **Asshole (11:01)** : I’m on the roof.

Oh. 

> **Obnoxious** **Asshole (11:02)** : Stairs down the hall on the left.

Is that an invitation? Dan debates just staying where he is, but ultimately his curiosity wins out. There’s a really heavy door down the hall that leads to a staircase. Dan steps out, and as the door closes with a thud, it occurs to him this is probably the fire escape. Dan tries the door again and it’s locked. Well, now Dan has no choice. He hopes Lucifer has his keys. Figures this is the one fucking door in his entire place and the only entrance he keeps locked.

There’s nowhere to go but up. (Or down, but they’re on the 17th floor or something and Dan’s supposed to be self isolating. He hopes this roof thing isn’t somehow violating that, but then Lucifer owns this whole building, anyway, right?)

After two flights, there’s another heavy metal door and then Dan is standing on the roof of Lux. There’s a light wind and it’s cloudy and looks like it’s about to rain. (It occurs to Dan the roof is maybe not the best place to be for that; lightning and all that. Lucifer might be immortal, but he sure as hell isn’t.)

He’s in this small area that’s flat with like a small, barely waist high wall around it, which is probably the area you’re supposed to stay in when you’re up here. It’s plenty far back from the edges, which is good because just looking towards them is giving Dan a mild case of vertigo. Lucifer isn’t anywhere to be seen, which means he’s on the other side of this, someplace where it’s much easier to fall.

Dan rolls his eyes again and debates whether he should just wait here. Then he hears movement and turns. Of course, Lucifer is sitting on the edge of the roof, feet dangling, smoking a cigarette. Dan shudders, involuntarily.

Lucifer sees him and half waves and then puts out his cigarette on the roof. Dan reluctantly jumps the fence and walks over to him.

It’s really fucking high and it feels like the wind has picked up. Is this another one of Lucifer’s mind games?

(It briefly occurs to Dan that like Lucifer could easily kill him up here, but he dismisses that thought outright. Like, maybe if it were anyone else, but Lucifer could have offed Dan in a billion different ways by now, not least of which was just leaving him at home alone to suffer through this quarantine and the corona virus. So Dan doubts this is anything but a mind fuck.)

“Hey.” Dan says when he gets closer.

Lucifer motions for him to come sit near him, and Dan feels compelled to point out “It’s really fucking high up here, dude.”

Lucifer makes this motion toward his back and says simply “Wings.”

“What, you’re going to catch me if I fall?” Dan asks.

“Guess you’ll have to take a leap of faith and find out, hm?” Lucifer responds back, arching his eyebrow with a slight smile.

The pun is cute. It’s enough to get past Dan’s better judgement anyway.

Dan takes a deep breath and sits. His feet are dangling in the air, hundreds of feet above the ground. It’s an amazing view up here though. 

Lucifer points towards an area of the sky, and there’s a rainbow arching over LA. “Sometimes, when I’m up here, I feel like I’m back... home…. No, not home, just.....”. He says softly, as if talking to himself. He trails off at the end and then just shakes his head.

“There are rainbows in hell?” Dan asks, stupidly, automatically, and the way Lucifer’s face changes to this tight, faked smile makes him regret it instantly.

“Yes, Daniel, hell. Obviously, my home. Devil right?”

Oh. That isn’t what he met. He meant…. Dan glances up. Sometimes, Dan forgets the whole story, or at least what he knows of it. Or thinks he knows, anyway. He always thought the Devil wanted to leave Heaven, that’s what they tell you in seminary (or did two decades ago, when Dan’s parents sent him). Reconciling everything Lucifer is, well, it’s really confusing.

“Sorry man, I.. I wasn’t thinking.” Dan apologizes. “If you ever want to talk about it…”

Lucifer waves a hand and they sit in silence for a few minutes.

The air keeps getting heavier, wetter. The humidity is crazy high. It’s going to rain soon. (How on earth is Lucifer comfortable up here in a freaking wool suit? At least his hair is starting to come undone.)

A minute later, they’re still sitting there when the sky just opens up without warning. All of a sudden, it’s pouring. Lucifer gets up and Dan tries to follow, but he slips trying to stand on the wet surface. For a split second, he imagines tumbling off the roof to his doom (and probably to an eternity in Lucifer’s southern kingdom), but Lucifer grabs his arm and steadies him, giving Dan a sly smile that totally reads ‘told you.’ Then they dash to the stairwell exit. 

Dan reaches it first, somehow, but he can’t get the door open. Locked? Shit.

“Do you have your keys?” He calls to Lucifer. It’s pouring. They’re both soaked at this point, Dan’s hair is dripping and his white T-shirt is sticking to his skin, completely see-through. His jeans feel disgusting. Lucifer, for once, isn’t faring any better: his hair is plastered to his head, the occasional soaked curl breaking free from whatever voodoo he usually uses to keep his hair in line. His suit looks waterlogged. He kind of looks like he fell in a pool. Dan snickers at the thought.

“Keys?” Lucifer looks like he’s never heard of the concept. “Why would I have keys?”

“You’re joking.” The look Lucifer gives Dan confirms that he is not in fact joking. Dan breaks into almost hysterical laughter at that. Oh man, they’re stuck in a rainstorm on the roof of Lux, with no shelter. Dan’s stuck here with Lucifer. And Lucifer looks like a drowned… devil. Which he guesses makes him a drowned detective or maybe a drowned douche, depending on Lucifer’s mood.

Dan thinks he might have said that out loud.

Lucifer gives him the strangest look. It’s not like annoyed or mocking, exactly, it’s closer to the look Dan sometimes sees him give Chloe or Trixie or even Amenadiel when they’re not looking, full of something maybe like fondness. 

Then he smiles and presses on the door handle.

“I just tried that, it’s —“

The door swings open and Lucifer pushes Dan through, right into the wall on the other side. 

“Locked?”

“Devil, darling. Nothing is locked to me except the gates of the Silver City.” Lucifer trips as he says it and falls into Dan.

Ah. Dan would process that longer, but he’s dripping wet and pressed between the concrete wall and Lucifer, who is also soaked and it’s freaking cold.

Lucifer seems to notice their state and starts laughing as Dan turns to push him away.

Except, there’s something about the way he’s got his arms bracing on the sides of Dan and the way he looks right now and —

And then, then it actually happens. For real.

It’s not a joking peck on the cheek or friendly greeting or even a drunken dare (which is honestly how Dan expected it would happen, if it ever did).

Instead, Lucifer is dripping over him, leaned against him in the cold stairwell, smiling; Dan’s leaving a wet outline of his body against the concrete wall as he turns around, and he’s about to push Lucifer away when their eyes meet for what feels simultaneously like a very very long and very very short second. And then Dan’s not sure who moved first, but then they’re actually kissing this time. Lucifer’s lips are warm, soft, and he’s…. well, he’s kissing him back, so—

Lucifer presses him against the concrete again, purposefully this time with the full weight of his body and Dan can’t suppress his moan. Dan’s got his hand in Luce’s hair and it’s just…

He’ll freak out over this later, when he has the brain power again to do so. But right now he doesn’t. 

He’s peeled off Lucifer’s jacket and it’s fallen to the floor and he’s not sure exactly how or when he did that. They’ve barely stopped kissing to breathe and Dan’s lungs are starting to protest between that and Lucifer’s body pressed tight against him.

As if sensing this, Lucifer breaks away to start sucking on Dan’s neck and all Dan can do is concentrate on staying upright while he sucks in air.

He feels Lucifer pull his shirt over his head and then there’s the sensation of cold concrete against his bare back. He’s managed to unbutton and pull off Lucifer’s shirt too, somehow. He’s not even aware he’s doing it. And then Lucifer is kissing him again, or maybe he’s kissing Lucifer and there’s panting and moaning and the the sound of his jeans being undone and the zipper sliding down and the the feeling of a hand peeling back his wet jeans and —

That’s when Dan is hit with the realization that if they don’t start moving downstairs _now_ , he’s going to have sex with Lucifer on this landing.

He tries to say as much, but it’s not coherent at all. “Luce — w-we shh— oh — down — ohh.” 

If Luce is responding, it’s equally incoherent because it just sounds like a bunch of heavy breathing and gasps and maybe a “Daniel.” 

Dan’s managed to undo Lucifer’s belt and one of the buttons on Lucifer’s pants, but there’s another on the inside he’s struggling with, what with the lack of coordination and lack of blood in his brain and the way the wool is heavy and sticking together and —

Dan feels his jeans being pushed further downward and Luce’s hand reaching under the waistband of his boxers to stroke his dick and he’s so fucking hard like instantly that now he doesn’t care anymore if they do this here, he just wants this. 

Dan’s lungs are protesting again, and Dan’s trying to suck in as much breath as he possibly can, he doesn’t want to stop, but he can feel his legs are starting to give out and he’s starting to sink downwards. His vision might be getting a little fuzzy too. Lucifer looks at him, confused, and then his expression changes to horrified. Dan tries to reassure him, to explain, to warn him, to just say _something_ , but he can’t get out words before everything goes black.

* * *

Dan wakes up in warm blankets. It’s dark. Late maybe? His head throbs. His body aches. Where the hell is he?

It takes a moment for it to register that he's in the penthouse, in bed. How did he..?

Then the memories come flashing back with alarming, perfect detail. The roof. The rain. The kissing.

Oh shit. He can’t quite connect what happened after that started and how he ended up here. Did they…? He’s so groggy. No, they couldn’t have —

He shifts. Every muscle in his body protests. Well, he’s wearing dry sweatpants now, so he must have taken off his wet jeans at some point. 

Memories keep flashing through his mind in a disconnected, dreamy way, where he can’t quite put them together. Wet skin against concrete. Buttons on soaked wool. Hair dripping on his face. Bruising lips. 

His head is pounding. God, he hopes he didn’t embarrass himself. Part of him hopes nothing happened — how fucked up would it be if he slept with Lucifer and can’t even remember it?

...Where is Lucifer anyway?

Dan hears a voice in the other room and starts to sit up, but he’s all kind of nauseous and aching. He can’t move. The voice is definitely Lucifer’s though and he’s talking on the phone, probably. He sounds upset.

“... Yes, he has a fever!” A pause. “I don’t know, he fainted and he’s been asleep. I asked Dr. Linda and she said to let him rest, but now he’s burning up and she’s not answering!” A longer pause. “Well, we were up on the roof and it started to rain... and then we started to head inside right before he—” His voice is higher, straining. “I can’t answer that.” Really strained. “No.” A sigh. “Detective, you know I don’t lie, so please believe me when I say I cannot explain that right now. Please don’t ask me to.” He sounds pained.

Well, Dan supposes fainting would explain his lack of memory from the last few hours and the aches. So much for not embarrassing himself though. Maybe this is the universe's way of telling him he shouldn’t hook up with Lucifer. Ugh.

Dan tries to sit up again. He still can’t quite do it, but it seems to catch Lucifer’s attention.

“Oh, I think he’s awake. I’ll call you back later.” A pause. “Of course, Detective, you have my word.”

A minute later, Lucifer is next to him, kneeling by the bedside. His hand feels cool against Dan’s face. “Daniel?”

“Yeah?” Dan tries to say, but it sounds more like a groan, he thinks.

His throat is really sore.

“Oh dear, you’re still burning up. Let me grab the acetaminophen and thermometer…”

He comes back a few minutes later and puts the thermometer in Dan’s mouth. A little while later, he takes it out and sighs.

“One-oh-three. Well. You’re certainly ill.”

Shit. Dan had kind of started to forget about all of that and the possibility that he was going to catch the plague. That would explain why he’s having so much trouble keeping his eyes open though.

“You need to take these and try to drink all the water.” Lucifer tells him. Dan thinks he means the Tylenol. “Can you sit?”

Dan tries again to sit up. Lucifer’s arms move to help him sit against the headboard — god, this is so embarrassing, first Dan passes out when they’re …. now he’s having to help him sit up. 

“Can you take these?” 

Dan nods and then he feels Lucifer’s hand pressing the Tylenol to his mouth. (His fingers linger longer than strictly necessary, maybe, Dan thinks or hopes or maybe just feverishly imagines.)

Then a glass of water is pressed to his lips. It’s cold, but feels nice on his throat. Dan tries to grab the glass, but Lucifer doesn’t let go.

“I’m not an invalid, dude.” Dan finally manages to croak.

“Really? It felt differently when I was dragging your unconscious form down the stairs.” Lucifer quips softly.

“About that…” Dan starts. “I, um…”

Fuck. What is he supposed to say? ‘Sorry for passing out on you, want to try that again sometime when I’m better?’ No. Of course he wouldn’t. Who would? (Plus, who knows if he’s going to make it through this? ‘Wanna hook up in between my being tortured in your kingdom?’ doesn’t have the same ring to it, Dan thinks bitterly.)

Lucifer starts talking too. “I didn’t realize you were so out of sorts, I didn’t mean to take advan—“

“What? No, that’s not… I…”. Dan’s throat is dry again. And god, his head is pounding as his chest hurts. (And he’s maybe panicking a little — this is so unfair, things were so close to being okay, maybe, and now? Now he’s going to probably die without ever knowing.)

“I should let you rest.” Lucifer starts to get up to leave, but Dan grabs his hand.

“Stay? Please?”

He knows this is pathetic. But Lucifer just nods and helps him lay back down. Then he carefully climbs on to the other side of the bed, close enough to touch, but not making contact.

Dan keeps drifting in and out of feverish dreams, but he swears Luce is carding his fingers through Dan’s hair at one point, and it’s with that thought he finally feels relaxed enough to fully sleep.

* * *

Dan barely wakes up the next day. He vaguely recalls Lucifer waking him to drink, to take his temperature, to take medicine of various stripes. (There’s an inhaler that seems to help with the heavy feeling in his lungs, and several pills. He vaguely wonders what they are and how Luce got them, but he’s too out of it to really care.)

The day after is better, kind of. Dan’s half conscious, for part of the day anyway. He manages to talk to Chloe for a minute and briefly say hi to Trixie. (They don’t want to scare them, so he doesn’t linger on the phone.) But his cough is dry and hollow and getting worse. He barely picks at his food, he’s not hungry. And he’s sure he reeks, but he can’t smell anymore and he can’t stand very long on his own or stay awake and the last thing he wants is to accidentally drown in Lucifer’s Olympic sized bathtub.

(Lucifer stays near him anyway, sleeping just an arms length away. Occasionally, he lets Dan curl against him, and Dan feels his fingers tentatively running over his hair and down his back. Or maybe Dan imagines it. Either way, it’s comforting.)

By day 4, the cough is still horrible, but he’s feeling a little less like he’s inching to the wrong side of death. He’s able to eat a little. Move more on his own. Kind of. (Lucifer is still sleeping closer to him than is strictly necessary and Dan isn’t sure if it’s just to keep an eye on him or what, but his libido is no match for his exhaustion so it probably doesn’t really matter.)

Day 5, Dan wakes up at a normal time and outside of the cough and inability to breathe deeply, he’s feeling only mildly terrible. He’s able to brush his teeth and comb his hair without collapsing at least.

Lucifer is making breakfast — pancakes — and Dan even manages to stroll in under the power of his own two feet. Luce is wearing that apron —the one from a few days ago, and…

(Two days ago, they found out the suspect that had spit on Dan and the guard who had escorted them had died. The guard briefly got better for a few days before he completely shut down too. Dan hopes that isn’t what’s happening to him.)

Dan decides to throw caution into the wind because if he’s going to die, at least he’s going to go out without pretenses. So he strolls up to Lucifer and grabs a cup of coffee.

“Someone’s feeling better,” Luce glances over at him while he flips a pancake. “Hungry?”

Dan exhales. A second ago, before he’d crossed the room, he felt brave. (Or at least reckless.) Now he feels… nervous. “Yeah.” Dan responds, putting his coffee down. Then he brushes closer to Luce and pecks him on the cheek, then picks back up his coffee and makes his way to the dining area.

Lucifer fumbles and drops the spatula. (It’s cute.) It’s the only tell at all; he quickly recovers and then smirks. “Pancakes?”

Dan looks back at him and nods. Lucifer brings him pancakes and more medicine.

“Oh, don’t pout, you’ll feel like shit in a moment if you don’t take the bloody medication.” Lucifer scolds him.

“Yes, mother.” Dan rolls his eyes and takes the pills before starting on the pancakes. 

Luce puts his hand on Dan’s forehead and it definitely lingers too long, and then he lightly trails his fingers down the side of Dan’s face. “You still feel feverish.”

Which, now that he mentions it, Dan does feel weirdly hot. And cold. And sleepy.

Okay, maybe he’s not doing as well as he thought earlier. 

“Maybe it’s you.” He hears himself say. And then breaks into a hacking cough. Sexy.

Oh god, maybe he should stop attempting to flirt least he pass out — again. 

“What?” Lucifer looks like he didn’t understand. 

Dan just shakes his head, still coughing. When he’s finally able to stop, he mumbles, “I think I should probably go lay down...”. 

Lucifer jumps up to help him walk back and Dan’s pride wants to wave him off, but the truth is he’s actually not feeling well anymore.

Dan falls back asleep as soon he hits the bed.

Lucifer wakes him up a little while later and insists he take a bath. He’s gotten it ready and everything. “Dr. Linda said it will make you feel better. I promise I’ll keep an eye on you so you don’t drown.” He teases softly.

Dan barely opens his eyes. “Luce?”

He feels a cool hand on his face.

“Dear, you’re burning up again. Come on, you need to take more medication.” Lucifer says, more concern in his voice this time.

Dan groans.

“Come on, darling.” There are arms pulling him gently upwards and then pills and water. “Right, now to the bath.”

Dan groans again. Lucifer hooks one of his arms around Dan’s shoulders and Dan half stands. Lucifer pulls him in an awkward shuffle toward his ridiculous bathroom.

Dan’s only half conscious when Lucifer sits him next to the tub.

“Daniel, do you think you can sit on your own so I can help you out of these?”

Dan would be mortified at this, maybe, if he felt better. Right now, he’s too exhausted to even care. “Trying...”

Lucifer let him go for a second to pull his shirt off and then he’s holding Dan’s shoulder’s again.

“Okay, now pants. Can you stand up for a second?” Lucifer helps him stand again and Dan kind of pushes his sweatpants down, then Luce helps him sit again and then pulls them off his ankles. 

“Okay darling, now let’s get you in the water.”

Dan moves then, slowly, with Lucifer’s help into the warm water.

The bath is really nice. It’s huge, enough that 2 or 3 or probably more people could comfortably fit in here. There are bubbles. And not like the kind Trixie has that smell like bubble gum and look like soap got dumped in. These are like fine, soft bubbles, maybe tinged with blue and the scent of vanilla (kind of like _him_ ). 

The medicine is starting to kick in, maybe, or maybe the bath is just helping, but Dan feels slightly less dead.

“Comfortable?” Lucifer asks.

“Yeah, but this feels excessive.” Dan mumbles.

Lucifer sits on the side of the tub. He’s just wearing sweatpants, which Dan hadn’t noticed previously. (In Dan’s defense, he’s been really out of it. Dan’s pretty sure he had a shirt on earlier though, maybe. Probably not a suit. Has he finally run out of suits or is he just slumming it because he’s stuck with sickly Dan?)

“Can I get you anything?”

Dan’s eyes feel so heavy. “You?” (Did he actually say that out loud? God, he’s so out of it. That would be nice though…)

Dan vaguely hears Lucifer saying his name, but it seems so so far away.


	5. To Hell With Nothing Left To Show

Dan wakes up in Lucifer’s bed, again, without any memory as to how he got there. (He’s got to stop waking up like this.) The first thing he notices though is that he can breathe. And he doesn’t feel like he’s burning up anymore.

The next thing he notices is he’s being watched. 

Dan rolls under the covers to his side. His muscles don’t protest or ache this time.

Could he actually be getting better?

Luce is laying on the bed next to him, on top of the covers, on his side. His head is propped up on one arm, watching Dan. (And Dan’s not not noticing that he’s just wearing sweatpants…..)

“How are you feeling?” Lucifer asks. He looks like he’s been waiting for Dan to wake up. There are bags under his perfect eyes, maybe. Like he hasn’t slept.

“Better, maybe?” Dan sits up. Without struggling or help. Lucifer is staring at him. “What?”

Dan realizes at that point he isn’t wearing clothes under the covers. What the...

“Just glad you’re on the mend. You’re going to give a man performance anxiety if you keep passing out every time I take your pants off.” Lucifer teases with a partly serious, partly relieved sound in his voice when Dan looks over at him.

That’s enough to make it all click and Dan’s last conscious memories start to come back. Ugh, was he ever going to not embarrass himself in front of Lucifer? (Probably not.)

“I guess that explains…”. Dan starts, gesturing at his state. (Yeah, this was all mortifying.)

“Yes, you’re like a wet noodle when you’re passed out. Trying to get pants on you this time was beyond my capabilities.”

Dan cringes as his brain imagines Lucifer carrying a wet, unconscious Dan out of the bath and drying him off and how his hands would feel —

Oh geeze, this is going from bad to worse. He’s not just cringing now. Dan’s glad Lucifer isn’t too close because this would be super awkward to explain. It’s already awkward enough when Dan’s naked, getting hard thinking about Lucifer’s hands on him, and Lucifer is sitting right there —

He has to stop thinking about this.

“Thanks for not letting me drown?” Dan says, trying to make light of the situation and willing his body to stop reacting. (A week of being barely alive after months of a dry spell apparently isn’t good for his self control.)

“I’m certain that would have defeated the whole point of you being here.” Lucifer sits up and starts to move closer to Dan, prompting Dan to twist away.

“Um, do you think you could give me a minute to get dressed?”

Lucifer nods and flops back onto a pillow, but doesn’t leave.

“Like…”. Dan closes his eyes and bites down the blush he is certain is spreading across his face. (He’s not sure how his body has the blood flow to blush right now, and the way Lucifer looks laying there — Dan can see the v of his iliac furrow and every ab muscle, and it’s just —)

“You know I’ve already seen you naked multiple times at this point?” Lucifer raises his eyebrows a bit in amusement.

And yeah, sure, but that was _different_ and Dan wasn’t…. yeah.

Dan gives him another look and Lucifer throws up his hands. “Fine, fine.” Then he gets up and leaves the room.

Dan quickly throws off the covers and runs over the closet, searching the corner he’s somehow taken over during the past two weeks to change. 

(What happens now? Should he get ready to go back to his place? Was Lucifer going to insist he stay through the quarantine period— what was it now anyway? 14 days after symptoms start? So like another 7 days? 

And where did this leave them? Had he feverishly imagined there was something there? 

He’s definitely not imagining the raging hard-on he’s currently sporting in any event. Ugh. 

And — not so minor detail, but currently the furthest thing from his mind — was Dan even actually better this time?)

All his stuff is neatly folded and hung in the closet and accompanying drawers. It’s weird, Dan always assumed Lucifer had other people doing all this, that all Lucifer knew how to do was party and schmooze, but now…. Well, no one's been here in at least two weeks and Dan has been useless for the last week so…. clearly Lucifer is doing it. And man, the dude is meticulous. Even Dan’s boxers are folded and his shirts look like they’ve been ironed and they’re organized by color.

Dan pulls out his boxers and sweatpants and a plain tshirt and quickly dresses, then runs to the bathroom to make himself more presentable.

He doesn’t know what he’s thinking when he walks into the kitchen and sees Luce making coffee. He isn’t thinking, really, which is why it’s so awkward when he realizes he’s leaned over and kissed Lucifer’s cheek.

“Is this our thing now?” Lucifer says with a hint of amusement in his voice. He passes Dan a cup of coffee and Dan busies himself with drinking it instead of answering.

“Would you like cereal or eggs? I haven’t had a chance to stock up on real provisions lately as I was… otherwise occupied.”

“I can get…”. Dan trails off. “Thanks again for…. keeping me alive.”

Lucifer smiles at him, and Dan can kind of see how he used to be an angel when he does. He looks — well, like, he’s attractive, _obviously_ , but it’s more than that, something that makes Dan’s insides want to melt and his heart race but also makes him feel… happy, maybe.

Dan grabs Cheerios (every other cereal in Lucifer’s place is sugary junk; if he didn’t have an angelic metabolism and self actualizing abs, he’d be so screwed with his diet) and he doesn’t miss the way Lucifer is watching his every move.

“You actually seem better.” He comments, sitting down next to Dan with a bowl of something brightly colored with marshmallows. It looks like something Trixie would eat.

“I feel better, man.” 

“Think we can try to kick Mazikeen and Eve’s asses again, later?” Lucifer casually asks him. “On the telly, of course, though I strongly suspect neither of them could contract your illness anyway.”

“Dude, we’ve never come anywhere close to kicking their asses.” Dan laughs.

Lucifer looks confused. “So, you don’t want to play then?”

“No, no, we’ll play. Just maybe let my character live this time since you’ve gone to so much trouble to keep me alive?” Dan jokes.

“I’ll think about it.”

* * *

Lucifer still manages to shoot Dan in the back. But Dan manages to make it through 3 games, lunch, Body Bags 1, dinner, and most of Body Bags 2 before falling asleep. And he hasn’t run a fever all day, his cough is only mildly hacking once in a while. And when Lucifer nudges him, Dan wakes and can carry himself from the couch to bed. 

And Dan manages to do it all again the next day and the day after.

He still manages to half consciously curl up against Lucifer each night while he sleeps though. And Lucifer doesn’t seem to mind.

* * *

Dan wakes up again alone in Luce’s bed like he has almost every day here. Lucifer is singing along to music in the kitchen though, and his voice is echoing through the place. It’s nice. (Dan could get used to this, maybe…. )

Luce is making coffee and some sort of omelet like thing on the stove. (He’s wearing _that_ apron again too.) Dan walks in and stands back and Lucifer glances at him. When Dan doesn’t come over, Lucifer raises an eyebrow. (He looks disappointed, maybe?)

Dan has this idea in his head he wouldn’t turn it into something and be awkward, like he’s been doing. But when Lucifer says “Good morning dear, coffee?,” he can’t help but shuffle over. Dan hesitates for a second, then leans over Luce to grab his cup.

The Pavlovian instinct wins out and Dan kisses his cheek as he pulls back with his coffee.

Fine, it _is_ their thing now.

(Luce smiles at him afterwards too. 

Dan really could get used to this.

He should stop thinking like this though because he’s going to have to go home soon.)

* * *

Lucifer takes Dan’s temperature like five more times over the next two hours as Dan reads a book and they half watch something stupid on tv.

After lunch, Lucifer suggests more Call of Duty versus Maze and Eve. 

Lucifer is still fucking terrible at this. Dan’s barely played and he’s still a billion times better than Lucifer.

Maze offs Luce in like three minutes.

Lucifer curses and throws his controller to the side of the couch in annoyance.

“Let me try yours. Maybe your character is better.” Lucifer says and tries to grab Dan’s controller.

“Yeah, Daaaan, let Lucifer play your guy so we can kill you faster.” Eve’s voice in Dan’s ear teases as Dan dodges Lucifer in real life while dodging Maze in the game.

“Oh, we’re going to fucking crush him anyway.” Maze taunts.

“Mazikeen, that’s not very nice.” Lucifer tuts. “Daniel, you really shouldn’t hide in the corner by the tank…”

“Luce, shut up!” Dan stammers. He’s so distracted by Maze stalking him in game, that he misses Lucifer grabbing his arm.

Dan twists to try to avoid him and then Luce is grabbing his other arm. Dan twists more, and then he’s half lying against Lucifer. He drops the controller. It bounces to the other end of the couch and then they both dive for it, pawing at each other in the process. Dan’s lost his headset in the scuffle and so has Lucifer. They’re tangled together, pressing against each other as they struggle to reach the controller.

Luce stretches to grab for it with his long arms, but Dan’s not thinking about the game anymore, what with Luce’s body pressed against his and Luce’s face like right there, slightly panting, warm breath touching Dan’s cheek.

Dan twists and kisses him. It’s tentative at first, just lips ghosting against lips. Then Luce abandons the controller and his hand is in Dan’s hair and his mouth opens and…

Dan’s eyes close as their lips move against each other. Yeah, this is definitely making out now. 

Luce nips at Dan’s lower lip and Dan full on moans. He’s pressed against Luce’s body and he can feel how hard they both are. Luce isn’t wearing a shirt and the feeling of his skin and tight muscles against Dan’s own is driving Dan crazy.

Luce breaks the kiss and their upper body contact for a second to pull off Dan’s shirt and then he starts sucking on Dan’s neck and slowly kissing down his neck and chest as he starts to pull Dan back into a sitting position.

All Dan can do is curl one hand into Luce’s hair while the other frantically grasps at his shoulders and then his back and then his abs and then his shoulders again. Dan’s eyes roll back as Luce starts to climb off the couch, his hands slowly coaxing Dan’s hips upwards so he can pull down and off Dan’s sweatpants as he positions himself between Dan’s legs. “Is this alright?” He asks in a low voice.

“Y-yeah,” Dan stutters, barely coherent. This is happening. This is happening. 

And then Luce is licking and lightly biting up Dan’s thighs to the skin where Dan’s leg joins his torso. Dan just reclines further against leather back, moaning —Luce’s name, “fuck,” “please,” incoherent sounds — and is completely lost in the sensations.

Then Luce starts to lick down his shaft and Dan’s positive he’s going to come, way too fast, just from that.

“Luce, p-please…”. He can’t even get out the ask. But Lucifer chuckles and then sucks Dan’s dick into his mouth. For several minutes, it’s the most amazing sensation, his tongue, and throat and —

Dan loses it. He’s not thinking anymore, his hips are moving of their own accord, moans coming out without conscious thought or control; his entire body is tight and on edge. It’s barely been five minutes, maybe, and he’s completely losing it.

“I can’t.. I-I’m …. I’m goin— t-to...”. Dan starts to warn Lucifer, but he can’t get the words out. He has such a tight grip on Luce’s hair and his legs are trembling with the effort of holding back. Until he can’t. “Oh fuck, Luce.” And then he’s coming and Luce is swallowing like it’s nothing.

Dan shudders once, twice, and starts to let go of Luce’s hair as the tension leaves his body. Luce backs up and licks him again, making Dan twitch uncomfortably, so Dan leans forward and pulls Luce towards him, into a crushing kiss.

“Holy shit, man, you’re…. wow.” Dan pants, only half coherently. Luce smiles at him and Dan feels hazy, like he’s floating. Then he moves to capture Luce in a slow, consuming kiss and it’s…. overwhelming.

Lucifer tastes salty, and Dan still can’t fully believe that just happened.

Distantly, he hears his phone buzz, but ignores it in favor of the kisses and light touches.

Lucifer is basically in half in his lap now, carefully avoiding Dan’s over-sensitive dick, when Dan pushes him sideways onto the couch and rolls on top of him.

Lucifer doesn’t say anything, just raises his eyebrows in... surprise? Amusement? Dan doesn’t have the brain power right now to really interpret it, he’s running almost entirely on pure libido right now.

Dan pushes Lucifer’s sweat pants down then off, and reaches down to rub his dick, and it’s at that point that Dan realizes he has no idea what he’s doing. Not really anyway. 

Lucifer grabs his arm, as if realizing. “I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to do.” He says softly.

Except, now that this is actually happening, it’s definitely not that Dan doesn’t want to, it’s just —

“I’ve never done this before.” Dan says quietly back, hoping Lucifer doesn’t notice the waver in his voice.

Lucifer brings his hand down to where Dan’s is already touching him and guides Dan’s hand. Then he kisses Dan again. “Seems as if you have the gist of it.” Even his eyes are smiling. Dan tightens his grip and Luce lets out a low moan.

It’s enough to sweep Dan up in the moment.

Dan starts tentatively kissing Luce’s neck, then trailing down his chest. He bites at his abs and hipbones, sucking and teasing. Luce’s hip buck upwards and Dan feels Luce’s free hand pull on his hair. 

Lucifer shaves or waxes or maybe he’s just naturally hairless when he prefers that, whatever it is, he has no hair on his chest or back and he’s neatly groomed near his dick. It’s weird because Dan’s like never noticed stuff like that before. (Okay, he’s kind of lying; he saw it sometimes on other guys and maybe started doing it occasionally himself because it looked good. But he wasn’t _noticing_ it _on_ other guys, or at least not on Lucifer. Right?)

Anyway, the point is, Luce is smooth from his chest down, and it feels strangely familiar on Dan’s lips and tongue, but also not because his body is like harder, more muscular than any chick Dan’s ever been with. And when Dan hesitantly licks his dick, he twitches and groans “Daniel” and the similarities to anything Dan’s ever done before are over.

Dan’s sure he’s not very good at this, having never given a blow job before and all, but Luce keeps twisting his hand in Dan’s hair and saying his name and moaning soft words of encouragement, so Dan thinks he’s probably doing okay at it.

His jaw aches a little, but Luce is being incredibly gentle with him, careful not to thrust too hard or deep. 

One of Luce’s legs is hooked over Dan’s shoulder and Dan can feel Luce’s heel hit his back and Luce’s calf and hamstring tightening.

There’s this rush of the excitement or fear or maybe some of both that runs through Dan. Part of him wants to keep going, wants to push Luce over the edge, wants to see him wrecked and undone and be the cause of it. But then there is also this fear that he’s going to gag or embarrass himself. (And how do you swallow and what if it’s too much? And what if Dan likes this too much?)

Luce moans again and Dan can feel every muscle in his body tighten. It’s driving Dan crazy, he didn’t think it was physically possible for him to have this kind of rebound time, but he’s definitely getting hard again. God, Dan still can’t believe this is happening, that he’s making Luce —

Luce suddenly shifts and grabs Dan’s shoulder, pulling Dan up across his torso. Dan grabs Lucifer’s hip to stop from falling completely on top of him.

“Am I doing something wrong?” Dan asks breathless. “I can…” He trails off but starts to move his hand off Luce’s hip, back towards —

Luce grabs his hand then pulls him upwards more so their hips (and dicks, Dan’s hindbrain notes) are touching. (Fuck, he’s so hard again.)

“Do you want to fuck me?” Luce asks with this wild look in his eyes.

Dan thinks he must have misheard because he can’t imagine Lucifer —

(He closes his eyes and inhales sharply because he absolutely can imagine it, his mind is already conjuring pictures of it, wanting it, even though he only understands the mechanics in theory.)

“Daniel?”

“Wh—“ Dan starts, head spinning a little as his brain struggles to be coherent.

Luce grinds his hips against Dan’s. (Dan’s dick is definitely reacting, even though he’s not sure he can get any harder.)

“Is that a yes?” Lucifer teases. (He’s really hard too.)

“Y-yeah, okay, it’s j—-“. Dan stammers as Luce moves against him again. He stifles a moan then bites out. “I’ve never—“

“I’m confident you’ll catch on quickly.” Lucifer tells Dan, a little breathless himself, as he reaches over to a wooden box sitting on the coffee table and pulls out a foil packet and a small plastic bottle.

Dan’s still kind of stunned at this turn of events (or maybe it’s just all the blood has left his brain, either way) so he barely notices as Luce rips open the packet and starts to roll the condom down Dan’s shaft. Dan’s breath hitches at the sensation, then his mind goes on overdrive supplying images of what is about to happen. 

He feels the coldish sensation of the lube through the condom and his heart starts beating so fast. Then Luce kisses him, tucks the bottle into his hand with a whispered “just add more if you need it,” then he shifts away, up the couch, knocking his discarded headset to the floor.

(Dan’s phone buzzes again. He barely even recognizes the noise.)

Luce turns over onto his stomach and Dan’s slowly starts to move his body on top of Luce’s again, mostly in a daze.

“You’re not going to pass out again are you?” Luce’s obnoxious (sexy) voice taunts him. “Or do you need directions? I thought this part would be fairly self explanatory but you just need to — ooooh.” Luce breaks off in a moan as Dan pushes into him slightly.

(Dan is so nervous and turned on. What if he’s doing this wrong? What if he hurts —)

Luce pushes back so Dan goes deeper and says in between pants “You can’t hurt me, just relax.”

Dan rocks deeper into him and the sensation is incredible. Tighter than he’s used to. And Luce is underneath him, moaning and squirming especially when Dan hits this spot —

“There. Daniel. Keep doing that.” Lucifer groans.

The slide of their bodies against each other and the way Luce moans and calls his name is incredible. Indescribable. Dan gets lost in it.

Dan starts kissing the back of Luce’s neck and Luce’s leg kicks out to the side, knocking over an empty glass and toppling over the box on the coffee table over; the contents scatter everywhere. Lucifer groans in annoyance. Dan tries to shift and they both half fall off the couch.

“Time to relocate?” Dan asks, pulling out, and getting up.

Luce whines but then is off the couch and pulling Dan into the bedroom in like a second flat and then they’re tumbling into the bed, face to face this time. 

Luce is kissing him when he slides into Luce this time and he can feel Luce’s dick dragging against his stomach as they move. (It’s amazing; sex has never felt this good before.)

It’s harder to find that spot like this, but after a little while Dan hits it and Luce bucks against him. Luce’s eyes are half lidded and he’s panting, shallow and rapid, incoherently moaning. It takes Dan’s breath away. 

(He doesn’t want to finish before Luce — god, _how_ is Luce still holding on? — but it’s so hard when Luce looks at him like this and grabs his arm tightly.)

Dan moves his free hand to touch Luce, and Dan hears Luce’s breath hitch and feels his muscles go tight. Dan is so close himself, he’s not sure he can hang on —

Dan moves once, twice, three times — and then he hears Luce exhale and breathe his name and feels a warm sticky fluid on his stomach. Then Dan can’t hold back either. 

“Fuck, Luce, oh, fuck.

Dan collapses on top of Lucifer, both of them just laying there undone for several minutes, panting. Then he rolls off of Luce and reaches for the tissues on the nightstand, still struggling to catch his breath.

Dan’s still cleaning himself up when he feels Lucifer shift close to him again.

“I wish you would have mentioned your attraction to men earlier, this is definitely my preferred shelter-in-place activity.” Lucifer is looking at him, eyes twinkling, well, devilishly.

Dan turns crimson, unsure how he feels about acknowledging that. Even if it is pretty blatantly true at this point. (There’s several tissues and a condom sitting in the trash next to his side of the bed that will attest to just how true.)

He’s still kind of shocked it happened. Even more shocked (but not actually) that he kind of wants it to happen again.

“Are you blushing? You’ve passed out on me how many times but acknowledging you like men is what embarrasses you? Really?” Lucifer teases and then kisses Dan’s shoulder.

Dan rolls his eyes and half heartedly socks Lucifer’s arm. “Fuck you.”

“Precisely what I was saying.” Lucifer leans towards Dan, grinning that obnoxious, overconfident, sexy smirk.

And Dan can only roll his eyes again and then roll over and kiss him, pressing him back into the bed again.

* * *

It’s hours later when Dan wakes up and thinks to check his phone. He groans, lamenting how he’s going to have to go out to the living room to get it. Which means crawling out from under Luce, who is sleeping partly against him, on his stomach with his arm around Dan’s waist and his head tucked against Dan’s arm.

Dan carefully shifts to avoid waking Luce and sits up. (Now Luce is hugging his thighs and his head is next to Dan’s waist.)

He looks out towards the living area. It’s completely a mess, clothes, discarded throw pillows, upturned glasses, strewn condom packages, their video game stuff, everywhere…. 

Dan isn’t looking forward to searching for his phone, he can’t even remember where he had it last.

He’s about to climb out of bed when he realizes there’s a blinking light next to him.

It's his phone. It’s docked into some fancy charger with a light. Lucifer must have done that. Dan smiles.

Then he grabs the phone only to see he has two missed calls from Chloe and maybe dozen text messages, mostly from Chloe but also Maze and Eve. (Weird.)

Shit, they were supposed to FaceTime with Chloe and Trix this afternoon.

It’s almost 5. Not afternoon anymore, but not so late he can’t fix this, probably. (Hopefully without drawing too much attention to their afternoon activities.)

> **Chloe (14:08)** : Is now a good time?
> 
> **Chloe (15:11)** : Let us know when you’re free.
> 
> **Chloe (16:05)** : Hey are you feeling okay?
> 
> **Chloe (16:24)** : Is everything okay? 
> 
> **Chloe (16:24)** : Neither you nor Lucifer are answering your phones. 
> 
> **Chloe (16:25)** : Let me know, please.

Dan hastily responds. 

> **Dan (16:58)** : Sorry, fell asleep playing video games.
> 
> **Chloe (16:58)** : Both of you?

Dan’s not sure how to respond to that. It’s true, kind of, but also maybe says too much and he’s not sure if he wants Chloe to know. (She said they weren’t dating, she said they weren’t together. Still, it’s weird, right? Her ex-husband hooking up with her... whatever Luce is. He hopes she isn’t pissed when she finds out. If she finds out. 

Maybe she won’t find out.)

Dan’s about to suggest they have a call in a twenty minutes when Chloe’s FaceTime request comes in.

“Fuck.” Dan swears under his breath. This really isn’t a good time for it. He doesn’t pick up, but then he hears Lucifer’s phone ringing.

Lucifer sleepily rolls over as if on autopilot, grabs it, and answers. “‘Ello?”

“Lucifer? It’s a video call, all I see is the side of your head.”

Dan swears under his breath again as Lucifer fumbles the phone.

“Are you in bed?” Chloe's voice sounds confused and muffled as the phone lands face down in the crumpled sheets.

Now Lucifer looks awake and slowly turns the phone over then brings it in front of his face.

Dan takes note of how he looks then. And, oh wow, he’s a mess. A shirtless, hair everywhere, sheet creases on his face, hot, sexy mess.

Dan’s stomach does a flip, first at the realization Lucifer looks ruined and it’s his fault, then again at the realization Lucifer looks ruined and it’s his fault and Chloe can see how ruined he looks.

“Did you just wake up or something? I had no idea video games could be so exhausting.” She jokes.

Lucifer’s expression looks like a deer in the headlights, which Dan would love if it were any other circumstance causing it. “Well, um...”

Chloe doesn’t sound like she suspects anything because she just asks “Is Dan around? I tried calling him first, but he didn’t pick up —“. As she’s asking Lucifer idiotically turns the phone towards Dan. Dan groans.

Chloe’s eyebrows raise when she sees him. Dan can see his image in the corner of the screen and he looks as bad as Luce. (At least Chloe can’t see they’re both naked under the sheets.)

“You weren’t kidding about the falling asleep, I guess. I didn’t realize you guys were sharing a bed like you’re besties now.” She says in an amused voice.

Dan tries to look at Lucifer out of the corner of his eye who is grinning in this terrifying way. Dan is carefully holding the phone to keep it shoulder and above level, least they give anything away.

Lucifer leans over to put his arm around Dan and his face into the frame, effectively smooshing his head against Dan’s. (His lower body from his hips to his feet are also now touching Dan’s too.) “Of course, he’s saved me from Mazikeen more times than I can count in the war game! We’re best friends now. With benefits!”

Dan turns white, but Chloe just cracks up. “I don’t think you understand what that means.” She says.

Dan shifts slightly. Lucifer has snaked his free hand under the sheet and is petting Dan’s thigh in a way that suggests he knows exactly what that means. Dan thought he was spent for the day, but apparently not…. (He is not going to fool around with Lucifer when Chloe could see or hear though!)

As if on cue, Dan gets a text from Maze on his phone. 

> **Maze (17:05)** : Are you guys still going at it?

Fuck, what? Dan’s eyes go wide.

Dan’s still holding Luce’s phone for the video chat; Lucifer and Chloe are talking about something while Dan distractedly unlocks his phone to look at his other text messages from Maze. When he sees them, he freezes.

> **Maze (13:40)** : Are you fucking?
> 
> **Maze (13:45)** : Holy shit, you are.
> 
> **Maze (14:02)** : 🔥🔥🔥🍆💦
> 
> **Maze (14:23)** : Feel free to leave your mics on every time you do that.

Dan thinks he might die from embarrassment. They could hear them. Oh god.

> **Maze (17:05)** : Are you guys still going at it?
> 
> **Maze (17:06)** : You should do video if you are.🤣🤣🤣

He backs out to his other messages and there are three from Eve.

> **Eve (13:35)** : u left ur mikes on!
> 
> **Eve (13:45)** : we can hear u!
> 
> **Eve (14:40)** : we owe u 1 haha

He really is going to die from embarrassment. Everything. They heard. Soon everyone is going to know he’s number …. probably like 40,000 something. Another notch in Lucifer’s bed post. (God, what if his parents find out? They’re going to disown him and that’s before they even find out the guy he slept with is the devil.)

“Are you okay?” Dan hears Chloe’s voice and Lucifer nudges his hip to get his attention.

“Y-yeah.” Dan thinks he looks nervous even in the video.

Chloe has this peculiar expression on her face, like she wants to ask or say something but also doesn’t. Whatever it is, she doesn’t say it.

Dan passes his phone over to Lucifer so he can see the messages, and his eyes bug out when he reads them. (He probably doesn’t want anyone to know either, right? Maybe he’ll swear Maze to secrecy. Like, he hates Dan. Usually. He won’t want this to get around. Right??)

“Okay, what’s going on?” Chloe asks. “Are you guys hiding something? Dan’s not sick again, right?” The concern in her voice is palpable.

Dan feels more than a little guilty when Luce says “Sorry dear, Daniel’s not sick. No fever so far. Just a thing with the video game against Maze. Speaking of which, if you’ll excuse me for a moment —”. Then Luce slides out of bed and off screen with Dan’s phone and quietly moves to the living room. Dan can see him over the top of the phone putting back on his sweatpants and then walking towards the kitchen.

“Is something going on with him?” Chloe asks. “He’s not getting sick or doing something stupid, right?”

Probably depends on the definition of ‘doing something stupid.’ Dan thinks. What would she characterize screwing her ex-husband as? (Yeah, that probably qualifies as stupid.)

He doesn’t say that and instead just offers “No, I think he’s just fighting with Maze.”

He doesn’t even think that’s completely a lie since he can hear Lucifer talking agitatedly in some strange croaky language in the other room.

“Okay, well…. Trix wants to say hi really quick and then we’ll let you go.” 

The picture shakes and goes to the ceiling and then Trixie comes into frame a second later. 

“Hey monkey.” Dan says. At least he doesn’t have to worry about her reading into anything.

“Hey Dad. You look like you’ve been wrestling.” She says. 

Spoke too soon, apparently. Dan blushes. He’s trying not to, but it’s noticeable.

Lucifer chooses that moment to reenter by sitting down next to Dan on the bed and hooking his chin onto Dan’s shoulder. “Urchin! How are you doing?”

Trixie has this look of contemplation, briefly, and then she starts excitedly talking to Lucifer about some kids in her class and zoom school and some celebrities Dan has never heard of. Dan’s trying to focus, but all he can think about is how everyone is going to find out. 

What will Trixie think? 

How pissed is Chloe going to be?

Lucifer and Trixie small talk for a little longer while Dan tries to keep up, and then Trixie says goodnight and they hang up.

“What are we going to do?” Dan asks worriedly as soon as the call is over. “What did Maze say?”

“What do you mean? There’s not much to do; I asked her to please close the connection next time and chastised her about failing to obtain our consent first. She ought to know better. She offered to make it even by letting us listen to her and Eve having sex, if you’re interested.” Lucifer shrugs.

“N-No!” Dan drops his head into his hands and groans. “So they definitely heard _everything_?”

Lucifer shrugs. “Appears that way. A—“

Dan cuts him off. “Are they going to say anything to anyone?”

Lucifer’s brow creases. “Pardon?”

“Are they going to tell anyone about…”. He trails off, anxiously. “You know.”

Lucifer looks vaguely offended. “No, I don’t.”

“Come on man, you know…”. Dan can’t even say it. He gestures between them.

If Lucifer were a normal person, Dan would think his face dropped, but that can’t be it. “Right. I’ll request they don’t say anything.”

Then he strolls out towards the back hallway and disappears.

Dan sighs. Fucking perfect. Maybe he should just go home now before this becomes an even bigger mess.


	6. Set Me on Fire

An hour and a half later and Lucifer still hasn’t come back and Dan maybe feels a little like he screwed up.

So he puts on Lucifer’s ridiculous apron and attempts to make tacos (it is Tuesday, after all, plus Dan’s not exactly a cook), and hopes Luce will walk back in and they can…. Well, Dan doesn’t know exactly. Figure out what their new normal is.

But Lucifer still hasn’t come back by the time Dan is done cooking.

So…. Dan goes to look for him.

He’s just stepped out the heavy door to the fire escape stairs when the door thuds closed and Dan recalls it locks behind him. He still doesn’t have a key, doesn’t even remember how he got back last time he —

Oh right. He was unconscious and feverish. (And quite possibly pantsless. Ugh.)

Dan really hopes Lucifer is on the roof again or he’s going to be stuck here.

Dan slowly climbs the stairs, wondering what the hell he should say. He’s not even sure exactly if Luce is pissed at him or …

Yes he is. The way his face fell when Dan said he didn’t want anyone to find out. The contrast with his face a few hours ago when they were curled up in bed together.

No, that’s not it. He probably just wants to brag about his skillet flipping whatever skills or something. Maybe.

Maybe not.

Fuck. This was bad. Dan was like imagining emotional attachments between them after a freaking day. He was so so so screwed. He always did this, he was fundamentally incapable of having casual sex, and that was really bad here because that was all Lucifer did.

Dan thinks about just going back to the penthouse and eating alone, but then he remembers he can’t because the door is locked. And then he realizes he’s on the roof and that door locks too, so now he really hopes Luce is up here or he’s super super fucked. (Also: this is a terrible design! Why have the roof lock on the inside? Who the hell was going to come into Lux this way?)

Dan slowly wanders over to the side where Lucifer was sitting last time they were up here and sure enough, he’s sitting on the edge, cigarette in hand, wings out, staring at the stars.

Wait — wings?

They’re huge and white and iridescent, glittering almost. They look beautiful under the moonlight, (and somehow it just fits; of course he has fucking pretty wings. Devil, fallen angel. Of course. Maybe that’s why the door locks on the inside, prevents flying visitors…)

“Woah. Your… they’re… you’re gorgeous.” It slips out without Dan even meaning to say it. Dan cringes internally.

“Oh, now you’re flattering me?” Lucifer’s voice is acrid.

“Can you fly?” Dan asks, impulsively.

“Do you think I sit up here for fun wearing giant wings?” Lucifer asks sarcastically; he rolls his shoulders and the wings quickly disappear. “What do you want?”

What the —? No time for that now, Dan can ask later, when Luce doesn’t seem pissed.

“There’s, um, well, dinner?” Dan tries to say, but it sounds like he’s asking. 

“I’m not hungry.” Lucifer turns back.

“Cool, it’s just… um, I’m also kind of stuck up here until you take me back.” Dan starts.

Lucifer is looking at him like he has two heads.

“The roof door is locked….”. Dan looks at his hands. “Also, um, this might not be the best time to mention it, but I’m pretty sure that’s a fire code violation….”. Oh terrific, Dan just keeps stream-of-conscious rambling.

Lucifer rolls his eyes, stubs out his cigarette, and then stands. He quickly walks over to the door leading on to the roof. Dan follows.

Lucifer opens it and holds it for Dan. Dan hesitates. “Well?”

“Thanks, but, um, I can’t get back into the penthouse either. That door locks too.” Dan mumbles.

Lucifer sighs and rolls his eyes again, but follows Dan inside.

“And if you’re coming down anyway, you should probably just stay for dinner, you know?” Dan tries to joke. 

(They’re both on that landing again.

The last time they were here flashes through Dan’s mind. He closes his eyes, briefly, trying to shut it down or maybe revel in it, he’s not sure.

If Lucifer’s affected by it — Dan knows he’s probably not, god, he’s probably made out with or had sex with several dozen people up here — he doesn’t show it.

He just pauses briefly, narrows his eyes at Dan, and then stalks down the stairs.)

Lucifer gets to the door to the penthouse and tries the handle. It opens. “It wasn’t locked.” He announces in an annoyed voice.

Oops. Maybe Dan should have actually tried it this time instead of assuming. (Or maybe he just wanted the pretext to get Lucifer back home.)

“Sorry, I probably should have checked that. Um, since you’re here,” Dan shoves Lucifer in through the door “dinner?”

Lucifer seems caught off guard enough that he stumbles inside. He looks — maybe glares? — at Dan, but then starts walking towards the kitchen.

It’s still kind of messy (Dan’s not as meticulous as Lucifer, not by far), but Dan’s got the taco stuff sitting out on the table.

“Did you …. ?” Lucifer looks confused. “Cook? For me—us?”

“I mean, it’s just tacos so don’t get too excited, it’s nothing like what you usually make, but…”

Something flashes across Luce’s face. Dan isn’t going to read into it, so he starts to walk past Luce, to the table, but Luce grabs his arm to stop him.

“Thank you.” He whispers softly then kisses Dan’s cheek and Dan feels…. overwhelmed. Happy. 

(And maybe a tiny bit horny? God, this crush just keeps getting worse.)

Luce lets go just as quickly as he’d grabbed Dan, the whole interaction only taking a few seconds, and starts walking.

Dan just stands there, frozen. Gobsmacked.

“Coming dear?” Lucifer’s voice rings out in his usual teasing, jovial tone, and Dan tries to shake off whatever this feeling is, then joins him for dinner.

* * *

Luce must have decided to forgive Dan because when Dan wakes up, Luce is spooning him, one arm draped across Dan’s torso, their legs tangled up.

Dan twists a little so he can press a quick kiss to Luce’s hair. (Dan doesn’t know why he did that, but Luce smells really good, like vanilla and booze and… him. Maybe that’s why.) Luce stirs a little, but only moves to hold Dan tighter.

(Dan sleepily thinks how he could do this forever, wake up this way every day.

He should stop thinking that, for soo many reasons, not least of which is that he’s probably, maybe, supposed to go back to his place next week.

But for now he’s here and Luce is warm and smells good and pressed against him like he’s meant to be here, likes being here, even, and Dan hasn’t had that in years, since Charlotte, so…)

Dan shifts again so he can press his face closer to Luce’s and drape his arm over the one holding on to him and falls back asleep.

* * *

Dan wakes up again to an empty bed and he briefly wonders if he dreamt the last 24 hours. Luce is singing in the kitchen again.

When Dan comes in, he’s making coffee and pancakes in his ridiculous apron. He’s dancing a little while he sings and it’s just so...

A word Dan can’t reach, not yet.

Luce pours him a cup of coffee and Dan smiles as he walks over.

When Luce turns around with the coffee, Dan is there, slightly pinning him to the counter. 

“Good morning.” Lucifer practically purrs.

“Hey.” Dan says back, mouth suddenly dry. He leans forward to peck him (‘cause it’s their thing now, right?). He pauses against Luce’s cheek, for too long, and then trails his lips down Luce’s face until he’s kissing Luce’s lips.

It’s starts softly, just lips brushing lips and then Dan deepens it.

Luce kisses him back, this look of _something_ Dan hopes might be more than just lust on his face when they break apart.

Then it’s gone. “Pancakes?” He asks. Dan doesn’t trust his voice and nods.

They sit down to breakfast and Lucifer starts discussing the news of all things, musing aloud whether he’s going to need to brush up on his Korean vernacular. (Apparently his Farsi is a bit rusty, which he discovered on his last trip down south.)

“Do you speak like every language?” Dan asks, suddenly connecting the dots between all the times Lucifer has been able to say random shit in Chinese, Russian… (How many times has he eavesdropped on conversations Dan has had with Ella in Spanish?? Shit!)

“Yes. A gift from God, you might call it. Before Dad threw me out anyway.” Lucifer grins.

“Say something in Arabic.”

“‘ahlaan 'ayatuha aljamila.”

“Bulgarian?”

“Sladka si.”

“German?”

“Langweilig.”

“Yiddish?” 

“Zikher.”

“Esperanto?”

“I’m not sure that even counts, estas sensenca. Are we going to do this all day?”

“Spanish?”

“Por supuesto, mi bonito.”

“So all the times I was talking to Ella…. Why didn’t you say something…?”

“You never asked. Also it’s much more fun to listen to your conversations when you assumed I wasn’t listening.” Luce winks.

“Oh, geeze, I’m sorry, I...”. Dan is starting to apologize, certain he’s said some douchey things about Lucifer to Ella when he thought Luce wouldn’t understand. 

Instead, Dan manages to knock over his coffee and then knock over Luce’s in the process of trying to save his own.

“Shit. Sorry again…”. Dan’s tries to use the napkins to sop up the coffee, but it’s dripping down the side of the table onto Lucifer now.

Dan cringes. “Let me help you...”. He starts, passing Luce a paper towel, then realizes how cringey that sounds.

Luce doesn’t look fazed. He just shifts in his seat as Dan starts to blot the coffee near his knees.

After a minute, Dan realizes his hands are wandering and he’s shifted closer. It’s weirdly exhilarating and scary, and Luce has this half lidded look like he wants him to keep going and... 

Dan quickly looks up at Luce who nodds, like he already knows the question, and then Dan ditches the paper towel and starts to explore with his hands and mouth instead. 

(It’s like that the rest of the day too — they find any excuse, any pretext to touch each other, press against each other, any reason to take things further.

And Dan’s kind of getting addicted to it. He wonders if Luce could be too.)

* * *

Dan might be in over his head. They’re basically fucking all the time now. Okay, not all the time, but it’s a lot. They’ve fooled around in every room of Lucifer’s penthouse along with his balcony and the roof. The last week has been exhausting but mostly amazing, well, except for one minor detail.

Dan is definitely catching feelings. And he’s not sure if Luce is. 

Dan’s phone buzzes. It’s Chloe. 

Okay, scratch that. Actually there are two minor problematic details. Dan’s growing, likely unrequited, feelings and Chloe Decker. (And that last one might be bigger than a minor detail.)

How mad is she going to be if (when?) she finds out? 

Dan sighs and tries to shift out from under Lucifer so he can worry about that prospect another day, at least.

“Do you have to get that?” Luce murmurs in a tired voice, pressing closer to Dan.

“It’s Chloe.” Dan says simply; Lucifer groans and pouts, but allows Dan to get up and sit on the corner of the bed.

(They haven't really ever discussed this, not really, there just seems to be this tacit agreement they aren’t telling Chlo.)

“Hey Chloe.”

“Hey, how are you doing? Trixie was wondering if you wanted to FaceTime.”

“I’m…. good. Um, can we in a little bit?”

“Are you asleep again? It’s the middle of the day.” Chloe teases him. 

“Yeah.” Dan responds, distractedly. (Luce just climbed out of bed looking like Adonis — shit, maybe Adonis was actually based on him?)

“Another intense video game session?” 

Luce is walking around the room to the closet to get dressed very very slowly. It’s innocent enough that Dan’s not sure he’s doing it on purpose, but it’s still distracting as… well, hell.

“Y-yeah.” Dan swallows harshly.

“Are you getting sick again?”

“N-no!” Dan says and tears his eyes away.

“One word answers today? What’s up with you?”

“Sorry, just distracted.”

Luce didn’t actually put on any clothes. He walks back across the room, throws a robe next to Dan, then sprawls naked across the bed, head propped up on one hand, watching.

“Is Lucifer walking around naked?”

Dan chokes on his breath. “What? How…?”

“He does that a lot, it’s strange. It’s like an attention seeking thing. Or so Linda says.”

While she’s saying this, Lucifer raises his eyebrows then starts army crawling across the bed towards Dan.

Dan shakes his head as Lucifer starts to trace up his body, arms going around Dan’s shoulders so Luce is hugging him from behind.

“Are you talking about me?” Lucifer whispers in Dan’s free ear. Then he starts nibbling on his ear lobe.

“Mmm hm.” Dan says to one of them or maybe both of them.

Chloe laughs and then starts talking about something else, clearly unaware of what’s happening on Dan’s end of the phone. Dan is really really distracted. Lucifer is kissing the back of Dan’s neck and lightly digging his fingers into Dan’s hips.

Dan’s breath catches when Luce gets a sensitive spot just over his collarbone.

“Mmm.” Dan’s trying not to vocalize, trying to pay attention to Chloe, kind of. He really should get off the phone. 

Luce is biting at his back and shoulders and his hands have slipped off Dan’s hips to lightly touch him.

Dan’s eyes roll back and for a moment, he forgets he’s still on the phone.

Then Dan hears a crash over the phone. He jumps. Chloe yelps. 

“Crap! Trixie just knocked over…. I’m going to have to call you back. FaceTime in an hour?” She says distractedly.

“Y-yeah. Bye.” Dan squeaks and throws down the phone.

“Took you long enough.” Lucifer smirks.

“Fuck you.” Dan says, smiling as he twists around to pin Luce to the bed.

“Please” is all Luce offers in response.  
  


* * *

They (predictably) don’t make it to the call on time. 

Chloe is (predictably) pretty pissed.

“What could you guys be possibly be doing that neither of you could get to the phone for…”. She looks down at her watch in the video “fifteen minutes? More video games?” Her eyes narrow on the screen. “Are you breaking quarantine?”

“What? No!” Dan says. He sounds guilty though.

Lucifer just laughs and grins at Dan then tells Chloe “We’ve haven’t left, Detective.” He punches Dan in the shoulder and switches to a cheesy American accent. “It's just so hard to keep track of time when I’m with my best bro.” 

Chloe looks suspiciously at them, and then laughs, probably in part because Dan looks so uncomfortable. “I’m going to figure it out, whatever that means.”

Dan’s heart skips a beat, but Luce just shrugs.

(After the call, he kisses Dan and asks him if he wants to do more ‘bro stuff.’)

* * *

Dan technically could have gone home over the weekend, he thinks, but Luce insists his count is wrong and he has another week. (It isn’t, he doesn’t.)

Dan isn’t going to complain, though, he thinks he’ll stay as long as Luce will let him. (He kind of hopes Luce’s counting issue is a pretext to keep him here…)

Plus, being stuck alone in his apartment in this shitty weather would suck. Especially tonight — the rain just keeps coming. April always is varying degrees of gloomy, but this is starting to set new records, it feels like. 

(Okay, Dan is also kind of freaked out by the storm, not that he’d ever admit that to Lucifer. Especially this high up? The high winds, the lightning…. He’d blame it on breaks spent with his grandparents in the Midwest and one too many brushes with tornados, but Lucifer would definitely still give him shit for it.)

The thunder crashes again and the light flickers. Dan jumps.

“Are you scared of the storm?” Lucifer asks, half-teasing, half-serious. 

“They’re just… “.

A particularly loud clap of thunder goes off overhead and this time the lights go out.

“Hope you’re not afraid of the dark.” Luce says.

“Terrific.” Dan says dryly. At least he’s basically recovered from being sick at this point; it’d suck to need to leave in this. 17 flights of stairs? (Still better than sitting in the dark alone at his place.)

Luce opening a cabinet startles Dan out of his thoughts. “What are you doing?” Dan asks.

Luce is moving all around, as if he can still see perfectly, moving stuff out of drawers and cabinets and setting stuff around the living room and then bedroom. Weird?

Then he comes to sit next to Dan on the couch and says “Watch this.”

A snap of his fingers and all the candles light simultaneously. It’s ….

“Okay, that’s pretty cool.” Dan admits.

“Pretty cool?” Lucifer harrumphs, mock offense in his voice. He’s smiling though. 

Lightning lights the sky and thunder claps again. Dan jumps.

“Any chance I can find some way to help distract you?” Lucifer says, leering as he runs his hand up Dan’s leg.

Dan leans in to kiss him. “What did you have in mind?”

Luce doesn’t answer, just deepens the kiss and pushes Dan onto his back on the couch. Luce starts climbing on top of him, kissing down his neck, fingers brushing just below the elastic waistband of his joggers —

When another boom of thunder and a particularly bright lightning blast ignites the sky, Dan jumps again, narrowly avoiding kneeing Luce in the crotch.

Luce kisses him softly one more time and crawls backwards, helping Dan sit back up. “Or perhaps we should engage in some safer activities for now.” Luce is still smiling and doesn’t look put out or annoyed. “How about a drink instead? Maybe with some music?”

“Yeah.” Dan says, adrenaline still surging in his veins and making him feel jumpy.

Dan’s pretty sure he falls asleep on the couch almost immediately, listening to Lucifer playing the piano and singing softly. At some point Luce wakes him up and helps him stumble into bed in the darkness and Dan feels safer than he has in years.

* * *

Dan wakes up in the early morning (or late at night?) from a weird dream and the first thing he notices is that it’s super fucking hot. Not like ‘he’s feverish’ or ‘Luce is walking around naked again’ but like ‘the house is an oven’ or ‘someone left the heater running on max.’

It takes Dan a minute to realize the heat is radiating off of the body spooning against him. Said body also has a death grip on Dan and is moaning in a harsh voice.

Dan tenses. Is Lucifer sick? Is that even possible? He feels like a thousand degrees though.

Dan tries to twist in the darkened room to look at him — the sky is still black, it’s so early, but they seem to have power again, the lights behind the bar are glowing — when Dan notices the arm Luce is holding him with looks burnt. Like, he caught fire or something. 

Spontaneous combustion maybe? A cigarette he forgot to put out? Did a candle topple over? Dan doesn’t know, but he’s freaking out. 

“Luce!” Dan croaks, urgently, reaching behind himself to try to shake Luce. 

Luce’s moaning in the guttural voice intensifies.

A ripple of fear crawls up his spine. God, is Luce going to be okay? He must be hurt, he’s not understandable and he’s so fucking hot. Dan’s got to get free so he can figure out what to do, put him out or dress the burns or whatever. 

(He wishes he’d paid more attention in their first aid classes at the station, he isn’t really sure how to handle serious burns. A gunshot wound? Sure. Not fire. But first he needs to make sure Luce is okay and make sure they both don’t end up on fire!)

Dan twists harder and is able to break free of Luce’s grasp.

When he turns around, Luce is laying there, moaning, clearly in pain and unconscious. Except he doesn’t look like Luce: his hair is gone, all his skin looks burnt and scarred and red. 

There’s this underlying current of panic in his veins. Dan’s mind can’t make sense of it. The bedding is fine, there’s no sign of a fire or cigarette, Dan’s own skin is unmarred.

Acid maybe? But how…?

“Luce!” Dan calls, trying to gently shake him awake. Dan’s trying to rouse him, wants to shake him harder so he responds, but he’s so scared of hurting him. 

God, how is Luce going to react to looking like this when he’s better? The dude is so vain sometimes, so prissy, would he take it okay? (Dan vows internally in that second to do whatever he can to help Luce, to stick around however this heals, whatever Luce looks like when this is over.)

What the fuck could’ve happened?

Luce’s eyes open and they’re blood red instead of his normal brown. He looks at Dan and then down at himself and makes this gasping, panicked, _sad_ sound. 

Dan’s heart breaks for him.

“Hey, Luce, Luce! Dude, can you talk? I don’t know what happened, if there was a fire or a chemical or something, but we’ll.., you’ll be okay, okay?” Dan’s trying to keep his voice calm. The panic is seeping in, though. Isn’t Luce supposed to be immortal? Invulnerable? (Unless Chloe is near?)

Did Chloe come over? No, she wouldn’t…. But how?

“Don’t look at me.” Luce says in a dry, guttural voice and then rolls off the side of the bed away from Dan. He sounds panicked too.

Dan runs around the bed to follow him. “Should I call someone? Can Doctor Martin or Amenadiel or Maze help?” Dan bends down to gently touch his jaw. It feels like scars and it’s so soo warm.

“Don’t touch me!” Luce growls, recoiling away almost reflexively.

“Does it hurt?” Dan asks softly. “Is there something I can get you?” From this close, he can see how mangled Luce’s face looks. The skin is red and maroon and shiny, the scar tissue pulls tight with every movement Luce makes. He’s never had the best poker face, but his facial expressions look a million times more expressive right now. 

They sit staring at each other for what feels like a long time.

“Why aren’t you... running?” Luce asks, breaking the silence. 

“Because I’m fucking worried about you? Please, let me help you?” Dan pleads. “Do you have like... burn cream or aloe vera or something? I know Doctor Martin is the wrong kind of doctor but maybe —“

Lucifer starts laughing, but it sounds… different. Dryer. Darker.

“I don’t think aloe will treat hellfire burns.” Luce grits out.

“What? How? Did something happen at night? Why didn’t you wake me…?” Dan is so confused. Did Lucifer go back to hell at night and get burnt? Is that what this is?

“No. This is my other face.”

“What?”

“My devil face. The one I got from falling.”

Other face? “Oh.” What the fuck does that mean? Whatever, they’ll figure it out later. Dan inhales. “Does it… hurt?” 

“Not physically, not anymore.” Lucifer says, almost nonchalantly. He’s still recoiling away from Dan, though; every time Dan moves closer, Luce inches away.

“Are you sure?” Dan asks, voice full of concern. (A small part of him thinks he’s giving away too much, showing too many feelings, but he’s too fucking worried to pretend right now.). “You sounded…. if there’s anything I can do…”. Dan trails off, silently pleading with Luce to just let him help.

“It was just a nightmare.” Lucifer says. He inhales deeply and takes on an intense look of concentration. A second later, his face melts back to the form Dan is used to, the pale skin and dark hair and dark eyes.

Oooh. So, that’s what he means by other face. It’s like a semiconscious manifestation thing?

“Woah.” Dan breathes. “So it’s like your abs? You just…. wow, okay.”

“Yes. If you’ll just back up, I can go wait over there if you want to run away now.”

“Are you sure you’re ok—“ Dan starts to talk over him, but Luce’s words catch up. “Wait, why would I be running?”

“Because, Devil? Monstrous, evil, scary red skin?” Luce gives him an incredulous look. “Even the Detective ran when she saw….”

“We’ve all got demons.” Dan shrugs. Maybe this should freak him out, but it just doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, not after…. Well, everything.

(Dan’s still more scared of his feelings for Luce than any mask he might wear.)

Luce looks exasperated. “Yes, but you realize mine involve actual demons?”

“Yeah, yeah, you’ve always gotta outdo everyone.” Dan leans forward and Luce doesn’t move away this time, his face softening into something that looks more like… hope. 

Dan gently runs his hand across Luce’s jaw and Lucifer leans into the touch. Dan’s stomach flutters. “I’m glad you’re okay, dude. Does that happen a lot?”

Lucifer sighs. “Not usually. The change is usually a conscious decision.”

“What were you dreaming about?”

“Hell. It was…. I saw y —“. Luce cuts off. “Could you do something for me?”

“Yeah, of course, what do you need?” Too quickly. (Dan’s sooo fucked.)

“If there’s anything you feel guilty about, talk to Dr. Linda or someone?” 

Dan feels confused, that wasn’t really what he was meaning to offer, but... “Yeah, sure?” He agrees. (Mostly. Maybe. Dan’s not actually sure he can talk about all of it. There’s _this_ whole thing with his growing, confusing feelings and Chloe and —)

“Please?” Luce says, kind of desperately. His face is pleading. One of his hands goes to cover Dan’s own hand at Luce’s cheek.

And Dan can’t say no to that. “I will.” 

“I don’t want you to go there.” Luce says softly. “The idea of you being stuck down there, tortured, it’s…. highly unpleasant to me.” His hand is lightly caressing Dan’s.

Dan looks at him in awe. Does that means Luce cares about him? Maybe more than just as a good romp?

(He must, right? He looks fucking terrified at the idea of Dan bring tortured in hell.)

As if noticing Dan’s gaze, Luce moves his face to look away.

“Hey. I’ll talk to someone okay? I’m still here. Come back to bed?” Dan says gently. He’s still holding Luce’s chin. Luce yields to the light pressure and looks at him again.

His eyes are burning, some emotion Dan has never seen on his face, or at least not one ever directed towards him, and it’s so fucking beautiful, so mesmerizing. It makes Dan want him in a way he can’t explain, that’s about more than just the physical sensations —

Dan leans forward, barely breathing, and kisses him. It’s so chaste, but there’s so much electricity. Surely he can’t be imagining this, surely Luce is able to feel it too…. 

(His eyes have so much emotion.)

They’re kissing and undressing each other when Luce finally pushes Dan back onto the bed. 

Luce is on top of him and he feels so good there, and Dan wants — Well, he wants Luce to stay there and — Wants Luce to know he trusts him, wants to feel close to him in this way he hasn’t —

Dan feels suddenly nervous, he’s not sure he can give voice to this thing he wants.

Luce looks into Dan’s eyes, and Dan sees some combination of surprise and longing in them, like he can read Dan’s mind. “Are you sure?” He asks in a hushed voice and there’s this slight tremor that Dan doesn’t think he’s imagining.

“Y-yeah.” Dan says, his own voice shaking, maybe from nerves or the emotion or both.

Luce shifts to reach into the nightstand and Dan closes his eyes as he hears the click of a cap and a slight gushing of liquid.

Luce hand trails down Dan’s torso, between their bodies, past his dick and…

Dan’s muscles tighten as Luce presses a finger against him.

“Should I stop?” Luce asks softly, his face pressed against Dan’s cheek.

“Keep going.” Dan responds, quietly, his eyes still closed.

“Try to relax. If it hurts or you change your mind, we can —“

Luce stops talking as Dan pushes his body onto Luce’s finger. Dan gasps, the sensation is overwhelming, new, maybe strange.

Luce moans, low in his throat, and Dan can feel him hardening as he ruts against Dan’s hip.

Then Luce starts to move his finger, slowly, gently, and at first it’s…. well, it’s weird. Dan’s not sure if he likes it.

He can feel his body start to relax and the sensation starts to feel better, maybe good, when Luce pulls his hand away, then presses into him again. It’s tighter this time and Dan feels strange, fuller, but it’s not unpleasant.

After a few more minutes with Luce moving his fingers, it starts to feel affirmatively good, maybe, and then Luce hits this spot and…. it feels good. It feels really, really good. He wants —

Dan moans and it’s like Luce can just tell because he kinda laughs, then shifts.

Dan whimpers at the loss of contact, and Luce kisses his jaw then asks “Ready?” in a soft voice that is definitely shaking.

“Please.” Dan begs, and then there’s the click of the cap again and Luce moving away, then pushing Dan’s legs apart, and then a slightly cold, slimy sensation, and then... then Luce is pressing into him and it’s indescribable. 

Luce pauses, barely inside him and then kisses his neck. Dan shifts to press against him, force him further; it burns slightly at first and then…

“This is amazing.” Dan pants as Luce hits that spot again.

Lucifer shivers and then moans himself, and suddenly all of the candles in the bedroom light up into this soft, ephemeral glow. “Daniel…”

Luce looks so beautiful above him in the candle light.

Everything just builds; Luce moving in and out, every thrust hitting just right, his lips tracing over Dan’s own lips, his neck, his jaw…. Dan running his hands over Luce’s body as Luce calls his name with more emotion than Dan has ever heard, maybe. Dan is so fucking hard, he keeps trying to press against Luce enough to just —

Luce moves his hand, balancing with some super human strength and coordination, and starts to stroke him in time with the thrusts.

It’s amazing, being here with him, in this otherworldly light, their bodies writhing against each other, the electricity between them feels like it could immolate them them if they don’t keep —

The sensations are too much and Dan can feel his body tensing, tightening. Luce gasps and trembles, and Dan’s aware of how tight his core feels against him and how tense his muscles are under Dan’s hands. Luce thrusts once more and their eyes catch — Luce’s look like fire — and then Dan can feel Luce’s release filling him while his own pours over Luce’s hand, mixing with their sweat into a sticky mess that paints their stomachs. 

Luce half collapses on him, still partly inside Dan even as he softens. Dan shifts and Luce rolls off of him, but not before kissing Dan like his life depends on it. It’s needy, desperate, full of things they’re not ready to say, maybe not ready to feel. (Or maybe that’s just Dan, but he’d swear Luce can feel it too. It’s palpable, this _thing_ between them.)

After what feels like a long time, Dan drags himself to the bathroom to deal with the mess and when he gets back, Luce has changed the sheets and cleaned himself up. Wordlessly, he pulls Dan into bed in a tight embrace. Dan kisses him and whispers “Thank you.” Luce breathes a happy sigh, and then the candles go out again. 

Dan drifts out of consciousness as he tries to memorize every detail of this moment. (Whatever happens now, at least he has this.)


	7. And Revel in the Glow

Dan wakes up in a tangle of limbs, slightly sore, but happier than he can remember being in ages. He should get up, maybe, but it’s too tempting to stay here, be here with Luce.

(He won’t say it, but he’s definitely in deep. He’s going to dream about last night for a long time. In the harsh light of day, though, he’s uncertain if the feelings are actually mutual or if it’s just his inner romantic wanting it to be more.

He really hopes it’s mutual.)

Luce’s phone buzzes and Luce looks confused, then smiles when he sees Dan still laying against him. “Good morning Darling,” he says and leans forward to kiss Dan gently.

His phone buzzes again. And again. Then his ringtone for Chloe starts playing. (It’s ‘Eternal Flame.’ Dan isn’t sure whether that’s an inside joke, since it’s one of Chlo’s favorites or if it’s… more. Shit.)

“That thing has the worst timing.” Luce grumbles and then flops over to grab it. “Morning Detective.” He chirps in a cheerful voice. 

(Dan now thinks that voice is affected, a front Luce puts on when he doesn’t want to deal with too many questions. Dan’s seen behind that wall now. 

He wonders if Chloe has too.)

“Oh, is it?” Lucifer is eyeing Dan now, eyebrows raised and the cheery demeanor seems less facade now. “Fascinating.” He pauses. “No, he didn’t mention. Which is unfortunate because that gives me substantially less time to prepare!” 

Dan looks at him quizzically. Luce narrows his eyes at Dan.

“Of course, Detective, I’ll behave. I won’t do anything Daniel doesn’t want to do.” With that he grins at Dan and winks.

Okay, what the hell is going on?

“Right then, we’ll speak to you and Beatrice around 2:30 then.” Another pause. “Ta-ta, Detective.”

Luce hangs up the phone and then, faster than Dan can perceive, rolls over and pins Dan to the bed.

“You’ve been very naughty, Daniel.” He says, and Dan is torn between being completely turned on and freaked out. 

Does he know about the... feelings? He doesn’t look like he’s actually mad. And what does any of that have to do with Chloe? She doesn’t know. Unless she guessed...

Then Luce starts nibbling on his neck and says “Did you neglect to tell me something about today?”

“Today?” This is really unfair because Luce is making it really hard to think. If it’s some kind of trick question, Dan’s never going to get it. What is today even? March? 

No, it’s April.

Oh shit.

“It’s my birthday?” Dan guesses. He’s kind of lost track of time here.

Luce gets off of him. “So the Detective tells me. Are you not sure? Because honestly, I’d take her word over yours on this.” He teases.

Dan sits up to kiss him. “You make it really hard to think.” 

“I don’t think that’s the only thing I made hard.” Luce quips back, moving to sit on Dan’s lap.

“You’re one to talk.” Dan murmurs, running his hands up Luce’s sides as Luce rolls his hips, pressing his own arousal into Dan.

“Well, I wasn’t just talking about you, dear.” Lucifer leans in to kiss him again.

Are they… like openly flirting now? Dan guesses so.

“So… are you going to wish me a happy birthday?” Dan asks, falling backwards and pulling Luce with him.

Luce props himself up on his arms over Dan and says “Something like that” before starting to crawl down Dan’s body with kisses.

* * *

Luce makes pancakes when they finally actually get out of bed and then disappears, warning he has some kind of business he needs to attend to before their call with Chloe and Trixie.

Dan starts four different texts to Doctor Martin to see about getting an appointment, but can’t seem to find the words needed to explain everything, or at least not ones he’s willing to admit to himself, nevermind someone else. He finally settles on non-descript:

> **Dan Espinoza (12:34)** : Are you still doing appointments? If so, could I make one for sometime?

Doctor Martin doesn’t respond, so Dan assumes at least part of Luce’s business is probably talking to her, so he leaves it alone for now. 

(Dan wonders if Luce ever mentions him, wonders if Doctor Martin already knows about their… thing. Wonders if Lucifer would tell her if he were catching feelings too. Or if he’s horrified by the idea of Dan having them. God, Dan needs to think about something else.)

Dan drowns himself one mindless TV, alone. Luce has retreated to an empty room or maybe the roof. Dan’s not sure, exactly, he’s trying not to eavesdrop.

Around 2, Luce returns, makes them a quick lunch and then they FaceTime with Chloe and Trixie (on time, fully dressed, with minimal flirting. At least nothing overt. Dan’s maybe disappointed by that.)

Trixie sings him a song she wrote and then she and Chloe present him with a gift certificate for Xbox online. “Since you’ve been playing games so much, maybe you can increase your game options or something? I don’t really know how this works.” Chloe laughs.

If only she knew how much of the video game playing was a pretext for making out with Luce. He won’t tell her though, so he just says “Awesome, thank you Chlo.” (Lucifer winks at him off camera.)

* * *

After they hang up with Chloe and Trixie, Lucifer leans over to him, teasingly. “I have a surprise for you too.” He says, then kisses Dan softly.

“Oh?” Dan asks, running his hands up Lucifer’s arms. (It’s going to be sex, he knows, but his heart skips a beat anyway.)

Luce surprises him by kissing him again, more deeply this time, and then pulling away, and walking over towards the piano.

(Okay, piano sex? That’s probably the one place they haven’t done it yet, Luce treats the piano like a child. Probably better than he’d treat a child, honestly.)

Luce sits down at the piano as Dan wanders over. Then he hands Dan a simply wrapped gift sitting on top of the piano and starts to play. 

Dan smiles and shakes his head as Lucifer sings ‘Happy Birthday’ to him.

He slowly unwraps the gift and it’s Doom Eternal. (Lucifer’s tongue in cheek humor on point as ever.) Dan laughs. They’ll have to play later, assuming it’s not too triggering for Luce. (Maybe they should talk about that first?)

Dan doesn’t have time to dwell on it because Luce is winding down.

“Happy birthday, my dear Daniel, happy birthday to you.” Luce sings, ending the song with a flourish.

“I’m feeling very JFK right now.” 

Luce stands up, pushing his body against Dan’s. “Does that make me Marilyn Monroe then, dear?”

“Well, you are the prettier one of us.” Dan quips softly. Luce’s mouth is so close to his, achingly close.

“And you are having a torrid affair with me, so I guess that’s fitting too.” He grins before kissing Dan again.

After a minute, Luce breaks away and says “Um, actually, to that end, I suppose, I, well, I have something else for you as well…”

He’s kind of grabbing at his wrists where his sleeves would be if he were wearing his usual outfit. (He’s not. He’s wearing sweatpants and nothing else, the new normal for corona isolation induced torrid affairs, apparently.)

“Is it you? Because I’d definitely like you wrapped in a bow.” Dan jokes, curling one of his hands into Lucifer’s hair. (It’s like the worst pick up line ever, but Luce smiles at him like he thinks it’s clever or maybe just enjoys the flirting. Dan is still kind of blown away he’s at a point where he can just stupidly flirt with Luce.)

Luce steps back and reaches into one of the pockets of his sweatpants and presents a small gold box simply tied with a white ribbon. “Close?”

Dan’s heart starts hammering in his chest because he has no idea where this is going or what that could be. (Dan’s mind flips briefly to when he proposed to Chloe, even though that’s fucking insane.)

Luce passes it to him and Dan swears his hand shakes slightly as he does.

Dan looks at Luce with wide eyes and then down at the box in his hand. “W-what is it?”

“You’ll see.” That brief moment of uncertainty is gone and Luce is grinning again.

Now Dan’s hands are shaking as he upwraps it, wondering what this is and how he’s supposed to react to it.

When he gets it open, it’s a key attached to some kind of key ring. It kind of looks like the key fob they have for the station doors, but it has 666 in fancy gold script across it.

Dan looks at Lucifer in confusion. Surely he didn’t do something insane like buy him a house or something equally weird?

“It’s the key to get in here.” Luce starts to explain. Dan’s brow furrows. “S-so you can come and go whenever you want, even after.... Well, _if_ you want, I mean.” Luce actually sounds legit nervous now, his voice wavers a little as he speaks. “I know the lift is usually unlocked, but...“ He trails off. “A-and you can also use it to get off the roof without me, if you’re so inclined.”

Dan inhales sharply. 

(They’ve never talked about their ‘torrid affair’ since that first day when Dan fretted over Maze telling someone about their hooking up. Until now with Lucifer calling it that, anyway. It just… _happens_ and they don’t really say anything about it. Not seriously anyway. Not once in the last twoish weeks. They talk around it, sure, but they never sat down to iron out the details or discuss what it means or if it’s more than just convenient sex.)

“Y-you want me to come over after…?” Dan trails off too. Is he asking what Dan thinks he’s asking? (Dan wants this to be more.)

“If you’d like to, I mean…”. Luce looks down. “I understand if an illicit affair with the devil isn’t something you want to carry on once you have other options, but—”

Dan drops the key and the box and kisses him. Until Dan can’t breathe and it feels like he might pass out (again), he doesn’t stop. He doesn’t know how to verbalize that he doesn’t want other options anymore, doesn’t think this is illicit, not anymore, maybe not even an affair, that it’s definitely something he wants to carry on, so he kisses Luce harder and presses him against the piano, hands grasping, aching to feel him, hold him, and just hopes Luce understands.

Luce kisses him back, equally passionately.

They’re already barely wearing clothes, so it doesn’t take much to push the waist bands down when they start frantically groping each other.

Luce’s voice is a hoarse whisper when he rolls over and pulls Dan’s hips against his ass.

There’s a moment of hurried breathing and scrambling as Dan reaches for the lubricant Luce has started carrying in his pocket. It takes another minute for Dan to be coordinated enough to continue, but then he’s rocking into Luce, pushing him against the piano and kissing him as Luce pants “Daniel.”

Luce’s chest is pushed against the piano, head resting on the black lacquered wood, arms clinging to the side. Dan is draped over him, one of his hand bracing against the piano and the other rubbing Luce’s dick.

(Part of Dan wishes this were more romantic than frantic fucking against the piano, more like this morning, but he _needs_ Luce _now_ , needs to feel him, to touch him, to be with him, and Luce seems to want that too.)

Distantly, Dan hears a chime, but he’s too wrapped up in the feeling of Luce’s skin against his and the way Luce looks with his eyes half closed and face against the piano, Dan’s lips on his neck and jaw.

For a brief second Dan has this urge to just admit he might be falling —

“Hey! Feliz…. DIOS MIOS.” Ella’s voice rings in Dan’s ears and he stops mid thrust. The sound of plastic crumpling follows.

Dan feels dizzy and like he’s going to physically fall now.

Luce’s torso is still pressed against the piano, and his eyes shoot open when he hears Ella’s voice too. He looks completely wasted, ruined, and like he’s struggling to understand what is happening.

At least Dan’s not the only one.

Dan slowly tears his eyes away from Lucifer, and rotates his head towards the noise. 

Ella is standing just outside the elevator in her full Ebola-outbreak outfit, a bag from Sprinkles cupcakes on the floor next to her. Dan can only half see her face, but her eyes are wide and she looks shocked.

“Ella?”  
“Miss Lopez?”

At the sound of each other’s voices, it hits Dan that she can _see_ them and what they’re, erm, up to — and he and Luce scramble apart as they pull up their sweatpants.

Ella starts hysterically laughing. Dan’s pretty sure he can see tears under the plastic mask covering her face.

They’re awkwardly just standing next to each other by the piano. Lucifer looks dazed. Dan’s not sure how he looks, but this all feels pretty surreal.

“I —. I had brought cupcakes so you could celebrate Dan’s being better and his birthday, but… it looks like you’re already having your own celebration.” She gasps out in between fits of laughter.

Lucifer looks worriedly at Dan. (More worried than Dan expected. Doesn’t this happen to him all the time?). “Erm… it’s….”. He starts then looks helplessly at Dan. 

Dan shrugs. He doesn’t know what to say. It’s pretty obvious, there’s no plausible lie. 

He sees the key on the floor under the piano bench.

He’s not sure he wants to lie about it or hide it anymore, anyway. (Does Luce not want Ella to know?)

“Um, thanks for the cupcakes?” Dan says lamely instead. Lucifer walks over to the bar, picks a bottle, pours an obscene amount of whiskey into a glass, then chugs it.

“I always kinda wondered if the reason you two always argued was on account of sexual tension.” Ella giggles, still slightly hysterical.

“Maybe?” Dan meekly concedes. God, does his voice sound squeaky?

“What?” Lucifer drops his glass and looks confused. Then he slowly turns to look at Dan. “Really?” His eyes are wide.

Ella looks freaking gleeful at this turn of events “Okay, um, so I can see that I stopped by at a _really_ bad time, so um, I’m just gonna…. go.” Ella is still laughing a little as she starts backing up to the elevator. “You all enjoy the cupcakes and, um, let me know what’s up later, okay?” The elevator doors close. “You should really get a lock on this!” She calls from behind the doors.

Dan goes to sit next to Lucifer at the bar. He grabs the bottle Lucifer was drinking and pours himself a much more reasonable amount. “So Um…. That was awkward.” Dan says to Lucifer’s toppled glass.

Lucifer still looks shell shocked and is staring at the bar when Dan steals a glance at him.

“You okay? Don’t people walk in on you all the time?”

“Well, yes, but you’re usually not here with me, so…”

“Ah.” So Luce doesn’t want Ella to know about them. Dan feels weirdly disappointed by this turn. He thought maybe… maybe they were going to…

(To what? Date? Come out to everyone? Ugh, he read too much into this morning, into the key.)

Lucifer turns to him, abruptly. “Why aren’t you more upset?”

“Should I be?” Dan asks.

“I thought — well— when Maze — I thought— “ He keeps starting and stopping. “I thought you prefered we keep _this…_ well, more discreet?”

Dan’s mouth starts moving before he really thinks about what he’s saying. “What’s ‘this’? Are we like… dating?”

Lucifer’s eyes go wide. “What? No, no, I mean…”. He looks like he’s struggling with the words. 

“I thought, maybe…. with the key and…”. Now Dan’s struggling. Fuck it, he can go back to his place if this doesn’t work. He takes a deep breath. “Would you?”

“What?”

“Want to like…”. God this is like pulling teeth. (Scratch that, Lucifer is probably quick at that. King of hell and all.)

“Want to…?” Luce looks so confused and lost.

“Date?” Dan clarifies meekly. This just keeps getting worse and worse. 

“What??” 

“Wouldyouwanttodateme?” Dan mumbles like it’s one word. It’s pretty clear what the answer is anyway, so Dan doesn’t know what he’s still bothering.

“I don’t know understand.” Lucifer has this wide eyed, shocked expression.

“Okay. Yeah. Sorry, I don’t know what I was thinking. That’s a terrible idea. I’m just... uh…. yeah.” Dan downs the rest of his drink and flees to the balcony. Luce doesn’t follow.

* * *

Dan’s sitting on one of the outdoor chairs, regretting basically the entire last month of his life when his phone chimes.

> **Ella (17:02)** : so... u and Lucifer?????
> 
> **Dan (17:02)** : ….
> 
> **Ella (17:02)** : what did i walk into?? 

Dan sighs. A complete misunderstanding? Something he thought was wonderful but it turned out to be an illusion? Another display in Dan ignoring the obvious future consequences of his actions?

All of the above?

> **Dan (17:03)** : me making an idiot of myself
> 
> **Ella (17:03)** : !!! What?? 
> 
> **Ella (17:03)** : sry I didn’t call 1st. I didn’t know u 2 had a thing!!
> 
> **Dan (17:03)** : I don’t think it’s anything.
> 
> **Ella (17:03)** : ur just fwb? Not serious?
> 
> **Dan (17:03)** : nothing now
> 
> **Ella (17:04)** : on his side or yours?
> 
> **Dan (17:04)** : Def on his. Less on mine. 
> 
> **Ella (17:04)** : oooh, so you are crushing on him?
> 
> **Dan (17:05)** : ….
> 
> **Dan.(17:06)** : he gave me a key to Lux earlier
> 
> **Dan (17:06)** : what was that supposed to mean? 
> 
> **Ella (17:06)** : sounds serious?
> 
> **Dan (17:07)** : he doesn’t want to date
> 
> **Ella (17:07)** : oww. He doesn’t have much experience with that though, so maybe…
> 
> **Dan (17:08)** : or maybe he just likes our fwb thing and I’ve fucked it up
> 
> **Ella (17:08)** : you guys looked really into each other when I walked in

Dan puts his face in his hand. He’s not sure if Ella is making a joke about walking in on them or if she means something else. (Even if she meant something else, there wasn’t anything else.)

> **Dan (17:10)** : uh, yeah
> 
> **Ella (17:10)** : lmao. I meant more than literally!
> 
> **Dan (17:11)** : you imagined it
> 
> **Dan (17:11)** : so did I

The phone buzzes again, but Dan stops looking and just stares out at the skyline.

Happy fucking birthday indeed.

He should probably get his stuff together.

* * *

It takes way too long to find his duffel bag and even longer to force himself to put stuff into it. It hurts. 

(A month ago he didn’t want to come here and now he doesn’t want to leave. 

That’s really prototypical Luce, huh. First you can’t stand the dude and then you can’t imagine a life without him.)

Speaking of the Devil…

Lucifer walks into the bedroom, pulling at his wrists. “Could we — “. He starts and looks at Dan. Then he seems to notice the bag on the bed. “Why are your things … “. He trails off. “Are you leaving?”

Dan almost feels bad because his expression looks so fucking _confused_ and _hurt_. But what did he expect? “Yeah, dude, it’s just…. I’m better and all so it’s probably time I…”

Lucifer’s expression hardens. “Oh. Right, of course.” He sounds resolved. There’s like this expression that flickers across his face like he’s trying to decide whether to say the next part or not. “Could you... stay for dinner, first? It’s your birthday and …”

Dan sighs. “Thanks man, but I should really just get going…”. Dan starts to grab his bag.

“You should take a car, here, let me…”. Luce grabs for the bag too and his hand brushes Dan’s. It’s like a painful electric shock. (How did Dan just imagine this connection? Why does he keep doing it?)

Dan pulls his hand back. “I can —”

Luce cuts him off and picks up the bag. “Nonsense, I insist.”

Dan can feel this burning sensation at the corners of his eyes. Feel this nauseous feeling that has nothing to do with being sick. “Fine. Just, um, I’ll be right back.”

Dan practically sprints to the bathroom and tries not to hyperventilate. He was kind of hoping he could just leave a note and deal with the fallout some other way.

He also wasn’t really expecting Luce to act like it mattered at all. It makes it harder.

When he comes back out Luce stoically leads him to the elevator and then a car in the garage, places the bag in the back seat, hands him the keys, and then says cryptically “Well, it was fun while it lasted. Goodbye Daniel.”

* * *

Dan turns the lights on to his apartment. He hasn’t been here in a month. He’s not sure he has any food anymore. He’s not even sure if he’s paid the last electric bill.

Dan throws down his duffle and then goes to look inside for something more comfortable to wear when he finds it.

The gold box. The key is tucked back inside with a note written in elegant script that Dan knows is Lucifer’s. ‘If you ever change your mind…. LM’

Dan’s still trying to wrap his head around what that’s supposed to mean when his phone rings.

It’s Chloe. He ignores it. It rings again. And again. 

A message pops up on the screen.

> **Chloe (19:46)** : I will come over there if you don’t pick up.

The phone rings again and Dan sighs and answers.

“Hey Chlo.” His voice sounds more hollow than he expected.

Chloe takes a deep breath, like she’s steeling herself for something big. (Dan doesn’t even have the fight in him to argue back. She’s going to be upset he left early, but it really doesn’t matter anymore.)

“Is something going on with you and Lucifer?” Chloe asks instead, pointedly.

Dan blanches, but he knows she just must be asking why Dan left. “Um…. I decided it was time to go home.”

Chloe sighs. “Dan. He told me.”

Dan’s breath catches. She couldn’t mean…. right? He didn’t want _Ella_ to know, surely Chloe is even more off limits. “What did he tell you, exactly?” Dan asks massaging his temple while he paces. 

Chloe sighs again. Dan can practically hear the eyeroll. “I mean, I didn’t get the whole story, he was pretty upset, but… you guys had some sort of …. “ she sounds like she’s wincing “ _fling_ going on. What the hell were you thinking?”

Dan stumbles. Both from surprise that Luce told Chlo, but more than Chlo is blaming him for all this! “What??”

“Come on, you’ve known him how long?” Chloe says, annoyance evident. “Surely you’ve realized his playboy thing is a facade and he doesn’t trust people! You can’t just… sleep with him and run away like it’s nothing!”

“Wait, what? He didn’t want a relationship, not me!” Dan rubs his forehead. “And like you’re one to talk!”

“I didn’t sleep with him!” Chloe accuses.

“He sleeps with everyone!”

“Not his friends! Not when it means some—“. Chloe starts to yell.

Dan cuts her off. “Yeah, well, apparently I’m not his friend, huh, just a sucker for good looks and sarcastic comments at my expense.”

“That’s not…. you are his fri —- wait, did you say you want a relationship...?” Chloe sounds as confused and upset as Dan feels. “You remember _who_ he is, right?”

“Yes, I remember! I saw his self-harm face last night and all I could think about was how worried I was about him. I can’t forget!” Dan cuts her off again, angrily. What the fuck? “What do you want from me? Do you want me like him or not?”

“I wanted you to get along with him, not sleep with him!” She gasps. “Not.. Wait, you saw his devil face and still...?” She continues, almost hysterically. “Oh my god, are you falling for him? Is that what happened?”

Dan doesn’t have the energy to argue anymore or feel angry or even deny it. “Well, sorry. I fucked up.” Dan sighs then adds half heartedly. “He’s got those skillet powers or whatever.”

There’s a long stretch of silence.

“You know that’s a joke right? He can only amplify things people already feel, not…”

Dan sinks onto the couch he’d forgotten he owned. The one he bought after moving, after Charlotte... It’s not leather or tan, no happy memories attached to it. “I know. I’d like him even if he didn’t have super powers.” Dan admits quietly. “He’s…. actually pretty amazing.”

Chloe gets quiet. “I didn’t realize you liked guys...”. She exhales. “I definitely have a type, hm.” She quips seemingly without thinking.

“Me too apparently. Touched by God and obnoxious.” Dan laughs.

Chloe cracks up at that and the tension melts.

“I just…. for what it’s worth? I don’t think he understood what was happening. He has a hard time with feelings. And an even harder time believing anyone actually likes him for more than just—”

“I know.” There’s a long stretch of silence. “Are you mad at me?”

Chloe laughs. “About breaking his heart, a little, about your” Dan can practically hear her face scrunching up as she tries to name it and fails “... _thing_... no, of course not. I’m a little worried you haven’t thought out the implications of trying to be with someone like him, but…”

“Chlo, I’ve had little else to do but think the past few weeks.”

“How long has it…? Is that why he wanted to quarantine with you?”

“What? I don’t think so, we’ve only been… together?...” god, Dan’s heart skips a fucking beat when he says that, “...for like the last two weeks or so…. “

“Really???”

“Well… I …. before I got sick, we…. I mean, I guess that’s really when it started, but I passed out when we….”. Dan starts to explain. (It’s weirdly relieving getting to tell someone about all this. To not have to hide it from Chloe.)

Chloe gasps. “No! That’s why he wouldn’t tell me what happened! Oh my god! No wonder he flipped out... ” She laughs, clearly amused.

“Are you sure you’re okay with …?” Dan trails off.

“Dan, do you still love me?” Chloe asks, suddenly.

Dan’s eyes go wide. There was a time when he would have given anything to hear Chloe ask that, to hope it meant something, but now...

“What?!” Dan stammers. “As like a really good friend or the mother of my child, of course…”

Chloe cuts in. “But not like when we were married right?”

“Yeah.” Where the hell is she going with this?

“That’s how Lucifer and I are. Seriously. You’re good.” She explains. 

Dan lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. “Okay. Okay, yeah.”

“Now, go talk to him, please?” He can hear the smile in her voice. “Please?”

It’s her pleading, chocolate cake voice that Dan always caves to. (And this time, he kind of wants to cave anyway.)

“Okay.”

“Good luck.” She says as she hangs up.

* * *

The elevator is locked when Dan gets back to Lux. Dan’s never ever ever seen it locked. He hopes the tag Lucifer gave him still works.

Dan takes a deep breath and swipes. It works. The elevator beeps and then a second later it’s speeding toward the penthouse.

Dan’s so fucking nervous. He’s not even sure what he’s doing, what he’s hoping for.

When the elevator spills him into the main room, it’s …. wow. A mess. _Especially_ for Lucifer.

The cupcakes are still sitting in the bag by the elevator where Ella dropped them.

Empty bottles and glasses are everywhere. There’s what is probably cocaine on the piano. The last bit of a joint is in the ashtray next to it.

Dan circles the room, peering into the bedroom. The bed is completely changed, new sheets and pillows haphazardly on the mattress, the old ones in a pile in the corner.

“Luce?” He calls.

Silence. Luce isn’t anywhere.

Dan sighs. At least there aren’t sheets over everything, like that time Chloe told him about. Luce is probably around, somewhere.

Dan decides to try the roof (he has a key now, right? No chance of getting stuck up there alone.)

He’s taking the stairs two at a time and his heart is beating like crazy but it’s not from the exertion.

Luce is sitting on the edge of the building, cigarette smoke pluming around him. His shoulders are hunched.

“Luce?” Dan says as he approaches. Luce jumps like a mile into the air, and Dan almost laughs at the idea of startling him.

Except then Luce loses his balance and slips off the edge.

Dan’s not thinking next when he runs and dives after him. It’s pure… reaction, adrenaline. He realizes as soon as he does that he’s made a horrible mistake. He’s falling off a 17 story building. He’s going to die without Luce knowing...

Dan’s still coming to grips with that when something solid slams into him, but it’s not the ground. 

He’s being lifted on to Luce’s balcony by the time his mind processes what happened.

“You’re a bloody idiot! I have wings!” Lucifer is squeezing him tightly against his body, shaking violently. “You do not! What in Dad’s name were you thinking? You fucking stupid mortal!” 

Luce’s heart is beating crazy fast. His voice is kind of cracking. Panicked. His face is contorted with fear. 

He’s still got the wings out, Dan can see them a little when he looks up at Luce’s face. (They’re still just as beautiful as the last time Dan saw them. Dan had kinda forgot he had those. Obviously, or he wouldn’t be jumping off buildings after him…)

Dan feels kinda sick and dizzy.

“S-sorry. I wasn’t… you went over and I wasn’t…”. Dan pulls away, retching. (Ugh, he’s making a great impression. Jumping off buildings, nearly vomiting on Luce’s shoes…)

Luce follows him, rubbing his back in slow circles as Dan dry heaves. (The wings seem to be gone again.)

After a few minutes, Luce leads him over to a chaise lounge and Dan sits as the nausea dissipates, fortunately without him getting sick. Luce sits next to him and abruptly stops touching him when Dan looks up.

“Apologies, I…”. Luce trails off. Then gets up to give Dan a glass of water. 

Dan takes the water and it’s at that point Dan notices Luce isn’t wearing one of his normal outfits, not a suit or even his new normal of a tshirt (— or not —) plus joggers.

“What are you wearing?” Dan asks, turning to look more fully at him. He is wearing joggers, but his top is... Well, it’s a dark hoodie. Dan’s pretty sure it’s one of his hoodies, actually, probably left when he fled earlier.

Luce turns red. Not like ‘ burnt Devil face’, but like ‘caught doing something mortifying.’ Dan has never seen him do that. (He doesn’t think he’s even seen Luce blush, come to think of it.)

“Well, um, I…. I borrowed….” He stammers. (God, he’s cute.)

“You stole one of the hoodies you always mock me about?” Dan’s stomach is doing somersaults at the idea of Luce wearing his clothes. (Chloe used to do that, probably still has a bunch of his old stuff; Charlotte did that sometimes too.)

“You left it in the laundry!” Lucifer defends. 

Which seems like a really shitty defense, considering… “So you’re wearing my dirty laundry?” Dan teases. 

“It smells like you.” Lucifer pouts and sits, hunching over as his face reddens more. And, oh god, Dan thinks his heart could like explode or something. He’s _blushing_ , he’s wearing Dan’s clothes, he misses Dan’s smell (Dan’s not sure what he smells like, he doesn’t have fancy cologne like Lucifer; Dan’s mildly embarrassed, honestly, but apparently Luce likes it, whatever it is, so...).

(Plus, he saved Dan from falling off a skyscraper and all.)

“You should keep it, it’s cute on you.” Dan tells him, smiling, and then leans over to kiss him.

Luce reciprocates with a heady sigh.

“I don’t know what I’m doing.” Luce admits softly.

“Me neither, dude.” 

“Would you stay?” Luce looks at him imploringly.

“With you?”

“Yes.”

“Yeah dude, yeah.”

“I thought you didn’t want — I mean, I don’t know what to call this or how to —“

Luce rambles.

Dan realizes that maybe he’s been too caught up in labels and worrying about what other people think. “I do want...this. And I don’t care what we call it if you do too...”

Luce doesn’t say anything, just wraps his arms around Dan and kisses him like maybe he’s trying to say the same three words Dan wants to say but is too scared to.

The making out leads to Dan’s pulling off the hoodie (and the joggers, and Dan’s own jeans and tshirt), and every touch feels electric, on fire, even in the chill air out on the balcony.

Luce is under Dan, his back arching, panting, and Dan is so overwhelmed by the emotions in the moment. (This is it, isn’t it? This feeling, this is—)

“Luce?” Dan gasps, holding Luce’s face and looking into his eyes. “I love you.”

Luce moans and then comes, and Dan follows quickly, and everything just feels so _perfect_ , so _right_.

They’re just holding each other afterwards when Luce asks “Did you mean...?”

The expression on Luce’s face makes it clear he’s not convinced despite Dan’s words. “Ask me? Do your thing?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Daniel, tell me — what is it you desire?”

“Just you. I love you.” Dan tells him like he’s in a trance. Luce looks so shocked and Dan gets worried he might run this time, maybe this is too much, too fast. “Y-you don’t have to say it back or anything. You don’t have to feel that way, I mean. I-if you don’t, i-it’s okay. I wasn’t… “. Dan fumbles over the words as he comes out of the spell.

“I think I feel it too.” Luce tells him, quietly.

“Yeah?”

“Yes. Happy Birthday, love.” Luce tells him before picking him up and carrying him into their bedroom.


	8. Epilogue

Dan wakes up to an empty bed, but can hear Luce singing love songs in the kitchen. Dan checks his phone and he has like a billion messages. From Doctor Martin, Ella, Chloe, even Maze and Eve. Basically everyone...

Doctor Martin is trying to schedule an appointment that Dan’s not sure he needs anymore. Ella is worried. (They never did eat the cupcakes. Dan wonders if they’re still good.). Chloe wants to know what happened (though her winking smiley face suggests she’s already guessed). Maze and Eve’s group message with Luce and Dan says they “heard a rumor from a detective....”.

Dan sighs happily and smiles. 

He makes himself halfway presentable and wanders out to the kitchen, where Luce is making something fancy on the stove. He’s fucking adorable, singing and dancing while he cooks. He sees Dan and pulls him into some dance move before Dan kisses him on the cheek.

(If he can just have this for a while longer, it’ll be enough, Dan thinks.

No, it’ll never be enough.)

Luce takes off his apron and Dan notices he’s wearing the hoodie again. Luce pulls him into a kiss.

“Are we…. can I — can we tell people?” Dan asks, a little nervously. (This is what ruined things last time, isn’t it?)

Luce doesn’t answer, exactly, he just grabs Dan’s phone out of his pocket, aims it for a selfie and then kisses Dan again while taking a picture.

Then he winks, throws the phone back to Dan, and like.. dances back to the stove to bring out their breakfast.

“Just send me a copy too!” He calls.

Dan grins. The picture is really cute too — he sees what Ella meant, the way they look at each other is….obvious. And the angle makes it really clear Luce wearing a hoodie (Dan’s hoodie) too. Dan’s stomach flips in that exhilarating, happy way.

He makes a mass message with everyone on it (Chloe, Ella, Doctor Martin, Maze, Eve, he even adds Amenadiel for the hell of it. And of course Luce), adds the picture and presses send before putting the phone down on the table.

Luce comes back with the food and sets it on the table, pulls out his phone quickly to check the messages, then flashes this boyish grin that makes Dan’s heart melt as he leans over Dan to kiss him.

Dan's phone is buzzing so much it walks off the table, but Dan’s too busy kissing Luce to notice or care.

_Fin._


End file.
